Wells Fargo appoints Kleber Santos as head of newly created diversity group

Wells Fargo & Company has announced the appointment of Kleber Santos as Head of the newly created Diverse Segments, Representation and Inclusion group.

In this role, Santos will “elevate the company’s internal and external diversity efforts”. He will report to CEO Charlie Scharf and serve on the company’s Operating Committee when he joins the company on 9 November 2020.

The creation of this role was one of several key initiatives announced back in June 2020 by Scharf, as part of the company’s expanded commitments to diversity and inclusion. “Kleber brings a unique set of leadership and business skills that, combined with his experiences driving diversity and inclusion outcomes, will enable us to drive meaningful change throughout the organisation and better serve our diverse customer base and underserved communities,” Scharf stated. 

ENSURING DIVERSITY AT ALL LEVELS

At Wells Fargo, Santos will be responsible for leading efforts to make the company a place where diversity is reflected at all levels and in every facet of the firm’s operations, processes and programmes. He will be focused on creating a more diverse and inclusive working environment and partnering with Wells Fargo’s business leaders to deliver products and services specifically designed to meet the needs of diverse customer segments.

Commenting on the new role, Santos stated: “I look forward to joining Wells Fargo and leveraging my business background and experience to promote and embed a diversity mindset into everything that we do. This new group will play a critical role in delivering products and services to help our diverse customers and in advancing diversity and inclusion at all levels of the company.”

DEEP DIVERSITY EXPERIENCE

Santos joins Wells Fargo from Capital One, where he worked for 15 years in a number of senior roles. Most recently he was President of Retail and Direct Banking, accountable for the division’s revenue, product development and marketing, branches and ATMs, and operations. As a member of Capital One’s executive team, Santos was deeply engaged in diversity efforts, including in the development of products and services and in partnering with community and consumer advocacy groups. 

Additionally, he helped to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace by enhancing his division’s recruiting efforts to require more diverse candidate pools and interview panels; helping introduce diversity-focused training and retention programmes; launching a formal mentoring programme; significantly increasing diverse representation on his leadership team; and chairing the Retail and Direct Banking Diversity Council. Santos also served as executive sponsor of Capital One’s Hispanic/Latinx associates and allies employee affinity group.

A native of Brazil, Santos holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Universidade Federal da Bahia, Brazil and master’s degrees in both business administration and management of information technology from the University of Virginia. He previously served as a second lieutenant of infantry in the Brazilian Army Reserve Forces.