Michael C. Hyter was appointed president and chief executive officer of The Executive Leadership Council, effective March 1. His appointment follows the election in January of Lloyd W. Brown II, J.D., as the organization’s new chair.
Hyter joins The ELC from global consultants Korn Ferry, where he most recently served as chief diversity officer and previously as managing partner of the firm’s Washington, D.C., office. He succeeds Crystal E. Ashby, who served as The ELC’s interim president and CEO for the past 14 months.
Hyter is the author of The Power of Choice: Embracing Efficacy to Drive Your Career,” and co-author with Judith L. Turnock of The Power of Inclusion: Unlock the Potential and Productivity of Your Workforce.” A recognized though leader on diversity and inclusion-driven corporate growth strategies, he has been an advisor to Fortune 1000 companies and their boards for more than 25 years.
With Brown as the new chairman of the board, he will lead the organization at a pivotal time in American society, as corporations transform their governance and leadership strategies to address longstanding structural gaps in racial and gender equity and opportunity.
Brown currently serves as the Corporate Community Reinvestment Act officer for Citigroup, working with business heads across the firm to establish CRA lending, investment, and service goals. At The ELC, he succeeds Tonie Leatherberry, principal, Deloitte & Touche LLP (retired) and will serve as board chair through the organization’s annual meeting in December 2022.
Brown joined Citigroup in 2009 as its CRA executive and is the longest serving corporate CRA officer in the firm’s history. He has partnered with three successive Citibank, N.A. chief executive officers to co-lead the CRA & Fair Lending Management Committee.
He is a board member for CALIBR Global Leadership Network and the National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders, and serves as vice chair of the Consumer Bankers Association’s Community Reinvestment Committee.
Founded in 1986, The ELC is the preeminent global membership organization for Black current and former CEOs, senior executives, and board members of Fortune 1000 and equivalent companies, top-tier entrepreneurs, and global thought leaders. It works to increase the number of Black corporate CEOs, C-Suite executives, and board members. It is also focused on building the pipeline of the next generation of Black corporate leaders through its formal leadership development programs.
