ANA Innovation Change
WHAT THEY DID
ANA, the Asian Network at
American Express, four years ago
decided to use its global membership to create innovative solutions to
business problems, especially those
involving Asian consumers.
appealing to Latino customers, what
the card should be called, what it
should look like (including colors
and designs) and what the marketing strategy should be.
HOW THEY DID IT
Each year, ANA identifies a key
business leader who finds a problem with which ANA members can
assist. Different members of the
resource group come up with ideas
and then a panel judges the efficacy
of the ideas.
RESULTS
The card was “wildly successful,”
says Jennifer Christie, chief diversity officer and vice president, executive recruitment. The original sales
period was extended from Oct. 30 to
Dec. 31 until Jan. 15 to include Three
Kings Day. After the Felicidades success, American Express has tried
other demographic holiday-themed
cards, including ones for Hanukkah
and Diwali.
RESULTS
They received more than 200 submissions a year. Last year, the question was how to broaden the card
base by better engaging people from
underrepresented groups. One solution was to create a special-rewards
program with exclusive membership lists and high-end private sales.
A second solution was to have communities design their own prepaid
cards and have rewards designated
to community-based charities. And a
third solution was to create a Lunar
New Year card aimed at the global
Asian community.
What the CEO Says
KENNETH I.
CHENAULT
Chairman
and CEO
American
Express
CASE STUDY
Brighton Equality Walk
WHAT THEY DID
Each year in Brighton, England,
the Equality Walk is held for LGBT
rights and usually has about 500
participants. American Express
used the PRIDE group to raise more
money and increase its visibility.
HOW THEY DID IT
American Express PRIDE members reached out aggressively to
merchants in Brighton, going door
to door and convincing them of the
need to support the walk.
CASE STUDY
Felicidades Card
WHAT THEY DID
The company wanted to increase
prepaid special-interest card sales to
underrepresented groups.
RESULTS
American Express added new merchants and $2.8 million in annual
card volume.
HOW THEY DID IT
The HOLA network examined which products were most
“We want American Express
to be an inclusive brand
and inclusive company. We
want our shareholders, customers and employees to
feel that ‘no matter who I
am, I am going to be included. I am going to be valued.’
Our Employee Networks
promote this inclusive
culture by developing and
engaging our employees while supporting the
growth of our broader business objectives. If you have
people with different perspectives and backgrounds
that come from different
environments, represent
different races, ethnic and
gender groups, the reality is
you’re going to have a richness of perspectives that will
allow you to think in a very
creative way.”
