After 17 years at Wells Fargo [1], Brad Blackwell, EVP, Housing Policy and Homeownership Growth Strategies at Wells Fargo Home Lending, has announced that he will retire, effective September 1, 2018.
Blackwell leads the development and advocacy for housing policy and the development of strategies to increase homeownership in the U.S. at Wells Fargo. "My passion is helping minority and LMI families to become homeowners. In my remaining time at Wells, I will be working hard to increase our capability to serve these consumers," Blackwell said in a social media post while announcing his retirement. "After that, I will be spending time with my two new grandchildren, traveling with the love of my life, and enjoying family and friends."
A veteran of the financial services industry, Blackwell was EVP, Portfolio Business Manager at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage until 2016, where he was responsible for building stronger capabilities to generate home equity and non-conforming mortgage loans for the bank.
Blackwell's passion for homeownership development in the country has resulted in Wells Fargo introducing new programs that promote diversity and inclusion not only within the bank but also towards its vendors and suppliers.
Speaking to MReport [2] for its June issue on Diversity, on the subject of Wells Fargo's plans on supplier diversity, Blackwell said, "Wells Fargo is taking a leadership position within the banking industry by placing diverse supplier growth within its strategic business agenda. We establish aggressive spending goals with diverse suppliers, and each one of the CEO’s direct reports is accountable for delivering on the supplier diversity goals." Over the past three years, Wells Fargo has added $300 million incremental diverse supplier spend and is investing over $1 million annually in programs designed to help a diverse business grow and scale.
Though he'll be retiring in September, Blackwell hinted at planning to continue his work to promote homeownership. "I'll be back in the not-too-distant future to pursue my passions in some form or another," he said in his post.