Banker & Tradesman photo / file
On the same day as Eastern Massachusetst Market President Malia Lazu’s departure, Berkshire Bank took steps to fill some of the roles previously held by its leading voice on diversity and inclusion.
The Boston-based bank on Wednesday promoted Jacqueline Courtwright to the role of executive vice president and chief human resources and culture officer, the bank said in a statement. Courtwright was previously the bank’s senior vice president and chief human resources officer. She will report to Sean Gray, Berkshire’s president and acting CEO.
Earlier in the day, Berkshire had announced that Lazu, an executive vice president and the chief experience and culture officer, had left the bank “to expand her work building more diverse, inclusive and prosperous companies and communities.”
Her departure came weeks after CEO Richard Marotta, who hired her, abruptly stepped down after the bank announced a $554 million charge in its second-quarter earnings that wiped out all its goodwill accumulated through past mergers under Marotta’s predecessor, Michael Daly.
Berkshire Bank has also started searching for a chief diversity officer, a new position that will add to the bank’s diversity, equity and inclusion work, the statement said. The chief diversity officer will report to Courtwright and oversee DEI initiatives.
Courtwright joined Berkshire Bank in 2012. Previously, she was vice president and human resources business partner at Citizens Bank and held senior human resource roles during 20 years at KeyBank.
In her new role, Courtwright will continue to lead Berkshire Bank’s human resource strategy and oversee cultural development for Berkshire’s workforce. She will also work with the bank’s leadership team to promote diversity, equity, inclusion and corporate social responsibility. She will also manage the internal and external communications, including its social media platforms.
“Investing in our people and advancing a culture centered around Berkshire’s mission and values is one of our highest priorities at the bank,” Gray said in a statement. “Jackie is a highly accomplished corporate leader, who can bring together the right talent to ensure we are accountable to our Be FIRST values and fulfill our corporate social responsibility efforts, including maximizing the benefits of our Reevx Labs platform for our communities and our business. She will be critical in driving and fostering partnerships that promote and advance diversity and inclusion internally and in the communities we serve to help capture the enormous opportunities in front of us as we build a purpose driven 21st-century bank.”
Berkshire Bank is also working with an outside consultant on its DEI strategies “to deliver on the promise of its Be FIRST values and establish trusting partnerships with diverse audiences both within the bank and in the communities it serves,” the bank said.
