The Carlyle Group Names Kara Helander Chief Diversity Officer

Former BlackRock Executive to Lead Diversity & Inclusion

Washington, DC – Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) announced today that Kara Helander has joined the firm as Chief Diversity Officer. In this newly created position, Ms. Helander will lead the firm’s diversity and inclusion efforts, helping to ensure that Carlyle attracts, develops and retains top talent, and will focus on increasing Board diversity at our portfolio companies. Prior to Carlyle, Ms. Helander served as Managing Director and Global Head of Diversity & Inclusion at BlackRock for ten years. Ms. Helander begins her duties today and is based in Washington, DC.

Carlyle Co-CEOs Kewsong Lee and Glenn Youngkin said, “A diverse and inclusive culture is a competitive advantage that enables us to attract strong talent across geographies, strategies and functions. Kara’s impressive track record leading diversity efforts within a range of industries will enable us to build on the solid foundation we have created, advancing our culture of inclusion and generating a new level of diverse thought.”

Ms. Helander said, “Throughout my career, I have worked at the intersection of business and social impact, a core value at Carlyle. I look forward to working with business leaders across the organization to deepen the company’s culture of inclusion for the benefit of Carlyle, its employees and investors.”

An 18-year veteran in the diversity and inclusion field, Ms. Helander has launched transformational initiatives within a range of industries. She most recently served as Principal at Helander Consulting, where she worked with senior leaders to design and build Corporate Social Responsibility and Diversity & Inclusion strategies. Prior to that, she served as Managing Director and Global Head of Diversity & Inclusion at BlackRock, where she created and implemented the company’s first global Diversity & Inclusion and Philanthropy initiatives.  She also founded the Science of Diversity & Inclusion Initiative, a coalition of select companies and researchers focused on developing new approaches to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. 

Ms. Helander earned her B.A. in Spanish from Vanderbilt University and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business.

Carlyle’s Approach to Diversity

• Carlyle seeks diversity of experience, thought, culture, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and generations
• Carlyle takes a proactive approach to increasing diversity and inclusion; in 2013 Carlyle established a Diversity & Inclusion Council to drive policy and action

Select Achievements

• • 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index (CEI)
  • Carlyle Board Members Janet Hill and Anthony Welters named to the “2017 Most Influential Black Corporate Directors list”

Diversity Statistics

• • U.S. Corporate Private Equity 2-Year Associate diversity (gender & race) has been more than 50% each of the last five years, with the 2019 class at 63%
  • U.S. Corporate Private Equity Senior Associate gender diversity is at 100% for the incoming post-MBA 2018 class (4 females hired)
  • Funds and Departments are required to have a diverse slate of candidates for every position
  • Stats:
    • 23% - women in Senior Positions (Principal - Partner) in US (20% globally)
    • 17% - female MDs/Partners in US and globally
    • 45% - overall hiring diversity (gender & race) in 2017 Analyst - Partner levels in U.S.
    • 40% - overall population diversity (gender & race) Analyst - Partner levels in U.S.

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About The Carlyle Group

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global alternative asset manager with $210 billion of assets under management across 335 investment vehicles as of June 30, 2018. Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, many of whom are public pensions. Carlyle invests across four segments – Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global Credit and Investment Solutions – in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America. Carlyle has expertise in various industries, including: aerospace, defense & government services, consumer & retail, energy, financial services, healthcare, industrial, real estate, technology & business services, telecommunications & media and transportation. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,625 people in 31 offices across six continents.

Web: www.carlyle.com
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Media Contact:

Christa Zipf
Christa.Zipf@carlyle.com
(212) 813-4578

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