Dress for Success Worldwide has added three executives to its Board of Directors: Anu Aiyengar, global co-head of mergers & acquisitions at J.P. Morgan; Cheryl Kern, vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion at MillerKnoll and Janessa Cox-Irvin, global head of diversity and inclusion and corporate citizenship at AllianceBernstein.
Aiyengar, Kern and Cox-Irvin represent companies actively engaged in helping to advance Dress for Success’ mission through a variety of initiatives, making their additions to the organization’s board especially meaningful. Additionally, Anu, Kern and Cox-Irvin will leverage their expertise in driving growth and building diverse, equitable, and inclusive environments to help propel Dress for Success forward as it seeks to enhance its services and offerings to combat the biggest economic crisis facing women globally.
“We are thrilled to have these three dynamic women on our Board of Directors during a momentous time in our organization’s history against the backdrop of the first global female recession,” said Joi Gordon, CEO of Dress for Success Worldwide. “Aiyengar, Kern and Cox-Irvin are joining us as we enter our 25th anniversary of economically empowering women around the world and I am certain that their insights will be invaluable to elevating our strategic vision.”
Aiyengar is the Global Co-Head of Mergers & Acquisitions at J.P. Morgan, a member of the Global Banking Management team and serves on the Steering Committee of Women on the Move for JPMorgan Chase.
Since 1999, Aiyengar has advised both domestic and international clients on nearly $1 trillion-worth of transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures/separations, leveraged buyouts, proxy contests, unsolicited transactions, and special committee assignments. She recently advised LVMH on its acquisition of Tiffany, E*Trade on its sale to Morgan Stanley, Home Depot on its acquisition of HD Supply, Navistar on its sale to Traton, Siemens Healthineers on its acquisition of Varian, Allergan on its sale to Abbvie, Standard Industries on its acquisition of W.R. Grace, and Waddell & Reade on its sale to Macquarie.
Aiyengar has been recognized by American Banker as one of the “Most Powerful Women in Finance” and named to Barron’s list of the “Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance.” She was also the recipient of the “2021 Asian American Business Award,” the “Impact and Innovation Award” by Dress for Success, as well as the “Rising Star Award” by Women’s Bond Club. Anu is involved with several initiatives across J.P. Morgan and Wall Street to recruit, mentor and develop women. Aiyengar is a panelist and speaker at several events including Wall Street Women’s Forum, Women Corporate Directors, Women’s Private Equity Summit, The Asian Women in Business, and the South Asian Bar Association Leadership Awards. Aiyengar is a guest lecturer at Chicago Booth and Harvard Business School.
Aiyengar lives in New York City with her husband. She holds a BA in economics from Smith College and an MBA from Vanderbilt University. Aiyengar is on the Board of Trustees of Smith College and the Board of Youth INC. Additionally, she is a founding member of the Smith Business Advisory Council. She is also actively involved with Rock the Street Wall Street.
Kern is MillerKnoll’s Vice President Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and leads strategic development and alignment of key priorities related to driving business results, maximizing the contributions of its people, fostering supplier and community engagement, which leads to a better world, and advancing a workplace culture of inclusion.
She is an experienced executive with cross-disciplinary expertise in the manufacturing, distribution, and consumer packaged goods industries, where she led diversity and inclusion for Lockheed Martin, Johnson Controls, Amway, and International Paper.
Kern has been recognized as a Top Diversity Executive in Corporate America by Black Enterprise, was a Champion of Diversity Award recipient, has been honored with the Diversity Salute Award, and was named one of the 10 Top Global Leaders in Diversity and Inclusion by Diversity Global Magazine. Recently, Kern was named a 2021 Top DEI Influencer by the National Diversity Council. As a thought leader, she has partnered on designing in-country inclusion solutions with stakeholders in the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Australia.
Kern is frequently invited to bring voice to complex diversity and inclusion challenges, including her recent perspectives related to COVID-19 and racial inequity issues where Forbes featured her in sharing her views on the pandemic and realities faced by various diverse communities.
Kern‘s professional affiliations are as a member of the African American Policy Forum, the Women’s Business Collaborative, and the Chief Diversity Officer Board. Kern is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She is married and the mother of two daughters and finds great joy in spending time with family and friends. Her hobbies include hiking and focusing on becoming a lifestyle guru.
Cox-Irvin is the Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) and Corporate Citizenship at AllianceBernstein (AB) and a member of the Operating Committee. In her role, she partners closely with the CEO, other executive committee members and human capital to lead AB’s global D&I strategy and provides thought leadership on advancing efforts that align with business priorities, meet the needs of a diverse range of clients and positively impact over 3,800 AB employees worldwide. Following the 2018 announcement of a headquarters relocation to Nashville, Tennessee, Cox-Irvin has led the development of a formalized D&I philosophy for Nashville, including a framework for community and employee engagement and corporate partnership.
As D&I continues to be a critical focus area for many clients and prospects globally, she has successfully positioned AB’s approach to D&I as a differentiating factor. Cox-Irvin and her team have personally been involved in multiple client proposals and mandates. Known for her dynamism, she creates spaces for authentic discussions on challenging topics and often serves in an advisory capacity for clients, providing thought-provoking, practical solutions for organizations and individuals at various stages of the D&I journey.
Prior to joining AB in 2015, Cox-Irvin spent 11 years at Deutsche Bank, where she served as Diversity & Inclusion Manager for the Americas region, responsible for integrating diversity practices within the corporate banking and securities and global transaction banking businesses globally. She holds a BBA in human resource management from Pace University.
Cox-Irvin‘s thought leadership has been featured in Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, Ignites, FundFire and CNBC and she has been recognized in Oprah Daily for her commitment to advancing women in leadership. She was a 2018 Council of Urban Professionals (CUP) Catalyst in Finance awardee and named to Crain’s 2020 list of Rising Stars in Banking & Finance. Additionally, she is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources (NAAAHR), the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) D&I Advisory Council and the Investment Company institute (ICI) Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
Cox-Irvin resides in Brooklyn, NY with her spouse, Lanaya.
