This highly skilled and culturally competent diversity leader values an inclusive work culture. Diversity and inclusion instill a sense of belonging for employees, promoting creativity and innovation and further providing companies with a better competitive edge. Under Supriya Jha’s leadership, Nasdaq champions inclusive growth and prosperity through improved company confidence and employee engagement. Supporting diversity and inclusion efforts at Nasdaq is Supriya’s primary responsibility and she believes that a cross-collaboration of best practices among peers in the FinTech industry is quintessential for its success.
Full name: Supriya Jha
Current job title: Global Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
Current company: Nasdaq
Current location: New York
“I am excited by the fact that FinTech innovations have helped underserved communities with greater access to financial products and solutions. I am hopeful that more dedicated focus continues to enable access for the underserved as this is not just the right thing to do but also provides the opportunity for scaled growth for innovators.”
Working in the field of advertising in India eventually led to a move to the U.S. for Supriya where she began her professional journey in Human Capital development. Starting with data analytics at Merrill Lynch, she transitioned into the area of Diversity and Inclusion at Bank of America. After a brief detour into the world of recruiting, she came back to Diversity and Inclusion at Mercer where she focused on D&I from a macro standpoint. Mercer allowed her to look at the big picture of industry vs. organization and introduced her to the many facets of D&I. Her strong background brought forth an opportunity at Nasdaq where Supriya currently serves as the Global Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging.
“As an immigrant and a foreigner to corporate America, learning to embrace my true identity in environments where I was a minority was the first challenge I learned to overcome. While being a minority, having the strength to stand up for others has been a big learning for me. The journey has been difficult and sometimes lonesome but the end product is very fulfilling and humbling.”
Greater innovation makes FinTech the rapidly growing industry it is. As studies have shown, diversity and a deep sense of inclusion and belonging can accelerate the progress of innovation. “Supporting organizations, like NYC Fintech Women, who are committed to advancing diversity in the FinTech world is another way for us to contribute. This year, we partnered with NYC Fintech Women and the UN Women organization and dedicated a portion of our International Women’s Day efforts to the topic of diversity in FinTech. Over 1,000 attendees joined the virtual program and heard from experts who talked about how FinTech is helping women get access to finance, how the Covid-19 world has impacted women, and the solutions that FinTech companies are generating to alleviate their struggles.”
Currently, Supriya is working towards building a culture at Nasdaq where all can thrive and grow to their optimal potential by supporting the external marketplace in advancing diversity, inclusion, and belonging through programs like the Alliance for Global Inclusion. “We realize the great responsibility and at the same time we have to enable change and with like-minded partners like Intel, Dell, NTT Data, and Snap, we have embarked on an ambitious journey to make change happen at an industry-wide level.”
Additionally, Supriya emphasizes the importance of data transparency and accountability for a better working environment. “In recent times, Nasdaq’s leadership has taken bold steps to support diversity and inclusion starting with data disclosures. We are disclosing many aspects of our people metrics through our external-facing statements and public indices such as the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index. The efforts behind such disclosures take extended periods of time and the hard work of many teams and I am very dedicated towards making this an integral part of our strategy and actions.” An amalgamation of all the efforts by Supriya and her team at Nasdaq is noteworthy as it creates a more equitable financial institution with diverse perspectives and broader mindsets.
More on Supriya
Currently live: Suburbs of Connecticut
Family: Married with 2 kids
Hometown: Delhi, India
Favorite hobby: Watching international cinema
Favorite part of your day: The evening when I cook for the family
Daily Diary
My typical workday
7:00 am – 8:00 am: Respond to emails and requests that have come from EMEA/APAC overnight
8:00 am – 9:00 am: Morning prayer/meditation, prepare the kids to start online school
9:00 am – 11:30 am: Back-to-back meetings with colleagues in Lithuania/Sweden/UK before they end their day
11:30 am: Time to prepare lunch for my kids.
12:00 pm – 3:30 pm: Meetings with colleagues/vendors in the U.S. to complete actions related to strategies
3:30 pm – 6:00 pm: Complete any important tasks related to work (independent work)
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Take a walk, Cook dinner, Evening meditation
9:00 pm – 10:00 pm: TV time - I tune into Trevor Noah’s Daily Show, one of my favorites!
10:00 pm – 10:30 pm: One final check on work emails.
10:30 pm – 11:00 pm: Check on family in India before I close the day.
Reach Out to Supriya on LinkedIn