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Last week, I had the chance to take part in a few really important conversations and further exemplify our leadership and commitment to driving financial inclusion. On July 13, I had a frank dialogue with Derrick Johnson, President of the NAACP, during their 112th NAACP Virtual Annual Convention. Our conversation centered around economic inclusion, the wealth gap and the ways companies, like ours, can help provide education and access to financial services. During my conversation with Derrick, he referred to credit as a currency. I think that’s absolutely the right way to talk about it. Credit gives people access to financial services. It can divide people or bring them together to achieve their goals. We recognize there are millions of consumers who lack access to credit today. That’s why we continue to innovate through tools like Experian Boost, our free tool that enables consumers to contribute positive payment data to their Experian credit report. Especially in underserved communities, consumers may not get credit for paying their utility bills, cell phone bills, or even their streaming services, and they should. This provides a more accurate picture of their financial situation. I also participated in a virtual press conference with the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and leaders from PNC, HomeFree-USA and Fifth Third Bank to discuss our participation in Project REACh, which stands for Roundtable for Economic Access and Change. It brings together leaders from the banking industry, national civil rights organizations, business and technology to reduce barriers that prevent full, equal and fair participation in the nation’s economy. We were approached to participate because of our deep understanding of credit risk and our ability to help financial institutions make informed credit decisions through data and advanced analytics. Our role is to help develop programs with the Alternative Credit Scoring Utility Team and Small Business Opportunity Team that drive financial inclusion. Our participation in Project REACh is the latest example in a string of efforts to address this important issue, including Experian Boost and our flagship lender score Experian Lift, which leverages all Experian assets to improve consumer’s access to credit. We believe that every individual deserves the opportunity to reach their fullest financial potential through fair and affordable access to credit. By sharing information around tools like Experian Boost, expanding credit education through partnerships like the NAACP, and working with leaders in the industry through Project REACh, we can help increase financial access and empower consumers to enter into the credit ecosystem – some for the first time. We’re committed to working side-by-side with regulators, businesses and consumers to eliminate credit invisibility and improve financial equity and access.

At Experian, we create a better tomorrow by powering opportunities for consumers, customers, our people and communities.  We use the full range of our capabilities to drive financial education and inclusion, and one of the ways we do this is through our United for Financial Health programme. I am delighted to announce the launch of this important programme in two of EMEA’s markets today.  We’re excited for the positive difference our two new partnerships will make to help vulnerable consumers financially recover from the impacts of Covid-19. In Italy, incidents of domestic violence have increased considerably during the global pandemic, with the Italian National Institute of Statistics reporting a 75% increase in calls to anti-violence helplines in 2020 alone.  Further statistics show women are particularly affected by unemployment due to Covid-19, reducing victims’ financial independence and their ability to escape from situations of abuse.  The increase in domestic violence since the onset of the pandemic has also been highlighted globally by the UN. To help those impacted, we intend to partner with MicroLab and Microfinanza, who support women victims of domestic violence, foreign caregivers, and young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs).  Our partnership aims to help these people access credit, so they have the financial means to improve their current situation, and take steps toward creating a better tomorrow.  We will collaborate to deliver financial education, and we intend to develop an app that captures open (non-traditional) financial data to help them build their credit profiles. In South Africa, unemployment stands at 32.6%.  A large proportion of people in the country run or work for small to medium-size enterprises (SMEs). By helping these organisations access affordable credit so they can continue to operate through the pandemic, we believe we can have a tangible impact on people’s employment. We will partner with the National Small Business Chamber, a non-profit membership organisation that supports SMEs.  Together, we will educate small business owners on their financial and credit health, empowering them to improve their personal and business credit profiles to access the funding required to maintain and grow their businesses. Combined, we estimate our partnership with our NGO partners will reach 3.8 million consumers, helping deliver on our Company’s commitment to reach 100 million people by 2024. We start work on these projects today on our path to creating a better tomorrow.

You may have recently seen the announcement of Experian’s new Employer Services business. While we have a longstanding history of serving multiple industries, we recognize some may wonder what prompted Experian to enter this space. It may even seem like a means to another end. In an effort to dispel any preconceived notions, I’d like to highlight what led us to invest in this business, how we plan to address employers most pressing pain points as employees return to work and what the industry can expect from us. The truth is our clients asked us to enter the employer services market. Employers have been seeking alternatives to legacy services. They’ve been asking to have a company of Experian’s scale and capabilities fill in the gaps, invest in innovation, and provide high-touch customer support. Essentially, our goal is to deliver on their ask and be an indispensable partner to employers across the U.S. Here are three ways we are bringing this vision to life: 1. The industry’s best and most trusted providers are now part Experian. A critical piece of our strategy is to bring together the best the industry has to offer. We have a solid track record when it comes to acquiring companies who disrupt industries with innovative solutions to difficult problems. So, we scoured the market to identify companies that would allow us to provide unmatched human capital management expertise. Through our acquisitions of Emptech, Corporate Cost Control (CCC), and Tax Credit Co. (TCC), I am confident we have assembled the best-of-the-best. Individually, each company has a trusted reputation for providing unmatched service to some of the most recognizable brands. As we come together, we are leveraging our combined capabilities to deliver secure, scalable and transparent services to even more businesses. We can assist employers across industries with streamlining complex and time-consuming Human Resources activities and support their finance team’s tax credits processes, through services including: Electronic I-9 verification management Unemployment claims management Employment and income verification fulfillment Tax credits and incentives management, including Work Opportunity Tax Credits (WOTC) Ultimately, we are helping employers turn workforce management into a competitive advantage by improving candidate and employee experiences, safeguarding employee information and maximizing the benefits of various tax credits programs. By leveraging our experts, our clients can spend more time focusing on their people. 2. Our services are backed by high-touch customer service and powered by industry-leading innovation. While we are rightfully recognized as the largest credit bureau in the country, I’ve personally seen our business grow over the past 20 years into something much more than a credit bureau. We are a global technology company and market leader in business insights and analytics, focused on empowering consumers. We invest heavily in innovation across a wide spectrum of industries, and we are committed to investing long-term in technology and processes to improve outcomes for employers and their employees. In fact, Experian has been recognized as one of the most innovative companies in the world by Forbes for several years – for our work in all of the industries we serve. At the same time, our services are delivered with the highest standards of data privacy, accuracy, security and transparency. Our clients will always know how their data is being used and how it benefits their employees. Our business continues to evolve to deliver world-class services for our clients and consumers. We’re bringing this same innovative mindset and focus to meet the evolving needs of employers. 3. We’re “All In” on Employer Services. While we recognize the employer services space was ripe for innovation long before the pandemic, the ensuing stay-at-home orders, rising unemployment, reemployment and legislation changes created a perfect storm for employers, Human Resources and finance professionals. We’re facing an entirely new set of workforce challenges today. Whether you need unparalleled unemployment claims management, tax credit expertise, verification of income and employment reliability and transparency or work eligibility certification, we’re here to bring the best Experian has to offer to help and we’re going all in. Our promise is that we will listen to our customers to understand their unique needs and invest to provide the capabilities and high-touch service tailored to best serve them. We know employers need a partner they can trust, who is focused on their business and their employee’s experience and who will bring new ideas to the table on managing a complex workforce in this ever-changing environment. We have the teams in place with deep expertise to tackle the toughest challenges. We’re thrilled to be here, and we’re committed for the long-term. You can learn more about our Employer Services business by visiting www.experian.com/employer-services.

Having a diverse workforce is vital to help us innovate and deliver on the needs of our increasingly diverse clients and consumers. Over the years, we’ve made some great progress, but there’s so much more we can do and it’s going to take the collective effort of all of us to continue to move the needle. That’s why we’re gearing up to celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD). It’s a day celebrated in many countries around the world to recognize the achievements of women and drive equality among men and women. At Experian, IWD activities are extending throughout the month of March. Have a look at what’s going on around the world as Experian celebrates this important day: Asia Pacific The Asia Pacific region is hosting a range of activities across our offices in March, which will include round-table and speaker events as well as an opportunity to network and pledge their support for IWD. EMEA and UK&I EMEA and UK&I are joining together for IWD to support and celebrate diversity and inclusion. The week started with a video of employees from both regions reflecting on what diverse teams bring to our business. Employees will also be invited to a variety of events to engage and network with inspirational women and hear stories from our leaders on what diversity means to them personally. Latin America Throughout the month of March, Latin America has been running a campaign to share stories of achievements in their region and raise awareness about breast cancer prevention and other diseases more common in women. On IWD, there will be a panel of women leaders who will address issues such as the social inclusion of women in the region, women’s participation in the labor market, Experian’s commitment to female leadership and the importance of a work/life In Brazil, IWD is kicking off with a presentation by members of the United Nations to present their 50-50 Gender Equality program (which aims to eliminate gender inequalities by 2030) and how they are working with companies around the world to achieve this vision. Employees will have an opportunity to hear from leaders in our business about diversity and inclusion plans for the region, and listen to a panel of external speakers discuss diversity challenges and career development. North America Our employees in North America will be kicking off the week with celebrations across their ITS’ 13 offices in the region. Each office will have daily activities throughout the week, and all employees – including virtual and those based in smaller offices – will be invited to attend webinars focused on Diversity and Inclusion topics. On IWD, there will be panel discussions with senior leaders who will speak on various career development topics. To close out the week, there will be a special Book Club discussion on March 9. We will continue to update this blog post all week with pictures and other ways we’re celebrating IWD. Bookmark this page and come back.

I work at SEGA, a global games company. I first met Nakamura-san, my contact at Experian, about eight or nine years ago. I remember telling him at the time that I was a little sceptical of credit report and analytic companies – I thought they were either too expensive or their reports weren’t detailed enough. However, a year later I needed help from a company like Experian, and I thought I’d put them to the test.   My team and I were starting to communicate with overseas markets, to work with companies around the world. So, I phoned Nakamura-san. It was a business negotiation, so I had my poker face on – I played the usual mind games you have to, insinuating that if Experian did this job well then our company might be able to offer them even more business in the future.   Safe to say, they passed the test. We’ve been building a really positive relationship with Experian for the last eight years.   We’re working with companies in Hong Kong, Taiwan and London at the moment. To work with them, we need information – for instance, we need to know if they’re actually located where they say they are. Even if a company gives us an address, it’s always possible that it operates from a different country – we’ve all heard about companies and their tax havens. When we have these questions, Nakamura-san and his team at Experian collect and analyse data on these companies, and give us very thorough information – breaking it all down and explaining everything to us really clearly.   It’s really difficult to get the rich, detailed analysis of data you need, but Experian provides us much better data than any of our previous credit research companies managed to. They consult with us, and help us use this data to get our business to a better place. I’m very grateful for it – they’ve added great value to our business. Mr. Shinji Mutazono, Team Manager, SEGA Group Companies Finance Department, SEGA Holdings CO., Ltd. 

In Malaysia, nearly 280,000 people live without electricity. By volunteering with the Liter of Light program, we’re bringing solar panel lights to remote villages, transforming the quality of life and brightening the darker hours for families. In Malaysia, more than 1 percent of the population lives without electricity – one of life’s basic necessities – which equates to nearly 280,000 people living in darkness after the sun goes down. Some people have never had electricity in their life, making simple tasks like cooking or reading nearly impossible after dark. I wanted to change that. My day job is to support and enable individuals within Experian to pursue various career opportunities, but what I’m most passionate about is the way Experian helps me invest in my local community through the Heart of Experian Corporate Social Responsibility program. This year, my team and I had the chance to collaborate with Liter of Light (LOL) – a global, grassroots movement committed to providing affordable, sustainable solar light to people with limited or no access to electricity. In February, we joined one of their projects to install 60 solar street lights in the village of Orang Asli, an indigenous community in the Cameron Highlands.   Over the span of two days in February, a group of 30 Experian volunteers built and installed the solar panel lights. On the first day, the LOL team taught us how to build the panels, teaching us the skills needed to cut wire, assemble PVC pipes and drill holes. The second day, we rode in Jeeps through muddy roads and a three-foot deep river to reach the village. We spent hours unloading the lights and assembling the panel boxes, plotting the village maps and identifying the right spots to install the solar panel lights. I was happy to see some of the local villagers’ curiosity and participation throughout the day. Some helped us assemble the lights while others prepared the right spots for installation by building bamboo stands. The weather was kind to us, so by 5 p.m., nearly all the lights were installed – just before dark! After completing all the hard work, our team recorded a group video using a drone that all of the Orang Asli children chased after. Thanks to our service project providing light to a village in darkness, 150 villagers in Orang Asli will now have more productive, higher-quality lives during the dark hours of the day. I’m so glad I got to play a role in that.