Nerdwallet's Lynee Luque is making professional development available to all 'Nerds'

The luckiest and often most successful employees have had someone along their professional journey helping them reach their full potential. At personal finance company NerdWallet, chief people officer Lynee Luque wants to be that person for all of her employees. 

"I initially worked in accounting, but about 16 years ago I shifted to HR," Luque says. "I'm passionate about not just opening doors for people, but also creating an environment that allows them to progress and achieve their goals."

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After Luque joined NerdWallet in 2020, mentorship and employee growth were top of mind, along with a strong support system for all levels that could foster DEI as a core value to the organization. To meet these goals, Luque created NerdWallet's Career Accelerator Program (CAP), which launched in 2021. The 12-month program includes workshops, individual playbooks designed around each employee's career path, one-on-one coaching and team learning and mentorship. Employees who have been with the company at least three months can participate; 91 of NerdWallet's nearly 800 employees have already done so.  

"CAP offers employees a personalized playbook to propel their careers forward, while fostering a more supportive and inclusive workplace," she says. "Although those types of programs are often designed and reserved for executives, we wanted to also focus on reaching underrepresented employees at all experience levels, so we opened up the program to ensure those at the beginning of their careers could join and gain access to quality development resources."

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Though CAP supports the development and retention of all employees who participate, it also aligns with NerdWallet's company-wide goal of increasing representation of underrepresented races and ethnicities, women in leadership and women in tech, she says. NerdWallet partnered with Landit, a company that works to increase the workplace success of women and diverse groups, to build the program. 

"As leadership opportunities become available, CAP ensures we always have an internal pipeline ready to increase representation at the leadership level," Luque says. "Because there is always space for continued improvement and growth, we view DEI as a continuous journey that inspires us to make sure every employee feels valued and has equal opportunities to thrive."

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To expedite a more equal gender balance among NerdWallet's leadership levels, Luque also oversaw the formation of the Leadership Empowerment Accelerator Program, available to all women in senior leadership positions. The six-month program, also developed with Landit, brings participants together with their peers for learning and sharing, offers coaching based on targeted development areas, and increases visibility with senior leadership, says Luque. 

These programs are just a part of NerdWallet's DEI plans for the present and future. For employers seeking to put together their own strategy for diversifying and strengthening their workforce, Luque urges continuous learning and an embrace of the potential an employee can bring to an organization. 

"Focus on the potential and values of individuals over academic pedigree, which starts with taking out college degree requirements for open positions," she says. "But that's just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to building a diverse and empowered workforce. To fully nurture this new generation of diverse talent, leaders should offer skill-building and networking opportunities to employees at all experience levels."