2nd Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Crescent Communities

DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION AT CRESCENT COMMUNITIES

THE CRESCENT COMMUNITIES DIVERSITY POLICY

Crescent Communities recognizes and values a diverse and inclusive workforce. Diversity embodies all the differences: life experiences, work experiences, perspectives, cultures, religions, ethnicities, gender, age, socioeconomic status, and other aspects of life, all that make us unique individuals. Crescent Communities seeks diversity in its colleagues, values their differences, and endeavors to treat all colleagues with respect.

Lunch through a Lens Event, Charlotte Office

DE&I TASK FORCE

Understanding that action in support of inclusivity must be demonstrated from the top. In 2020, our Executive Committee established a volunteer-based Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force led by our Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer, Tracy Chambers. The mission of the Task Force builds upon the diversity policy as follows:

We will reinforce our commitment to creating opportunities for all through an open and honest dialogue and develop proactive solutions that will lead to a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce.

Use this QR code to learn about the establishment of our task force and to read our inaugural Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Report from 2021.

Originally consisting of 5 committees, our Task Force efforts were revisited in 2022, and reorganized into three focused committees: LEARNING AND CONVERSATIONS, RECRUITING AND PARTNERSHIPS. Our ongoing commitment to create a more equitable workplace and inclusive society for our colleagues and our communities is demonstrated by the transparency offered in this report.

NOVEL Edgehill, Nashville

LEARNING AND CONVERSATIONS COMMITTEE

MISSION

Offer all colleagues the opportunity to gain new perspectives and share in conversations to help us become more aware, compassionate and engaged in the quest for equity.

MEMBERS

Aldo Muccia, Lisa Phocas, Kesha Smith, Carrie DeLuca, Justin Cislo, Meaghan

Kroener Janson and Latondra Riley

EXECUTIVE SPONSORS

Jay Curran, Ben Collins and Kevin Lambert

MAY 2022: LUNCH THROUGH A LENS — GENDER IDENTITY

Imagine carrying the added emotional weight of having to deny one of the most fundamental aspects of who you are - your gender identity. Despite a growing global awareness of the struggles trans people face, many companies that are LGBTQ+-friendly usually focus more on the “LGB” than on the “TQ+” and hence are ill-equipped to create a workplace culture that is truly supportive of trans colleagues. We welcomed Genevieve Wicker who shared her unique story of navigating gender identity and ultimately choosing to become a woman. Her open, candid insights enhanced our journey toward greater understanding and inclusion.

Genevieve did an incredible job of putting into context the value of empathy and support in helping a person be positive and productive when they are different. Her support network — people who clearly recognized that she’s a great person and productive contributor — was surely well-earned, but truly demonstrates the importance of empathy in the workplace.

JAY CURRAN, PRESIDENT, MULTIFAMILY

JUNE 2022: JUNETEENTH PRESENTATION

We were honored to welcome guest speakers Ohavia Phillips and Brittany Moore to discuss the significance of Juneteenth with our colleagues. Brittany shared how her unique perspective on the historic day led her to spearheading the “Lighting up Uptown for Juneteenth” initiative. We also heard from Ohavia about why it’s important to continuously share the history of Juneteenth and work diligently to be educated and intentional rather than performative.

SEPTEMBER 2022: LUNCH THROUGH A LENS — ARTLIFTING

ArtLifting creates opportunity, empowerment and validation for artists who have experienced homelessness and/or disability by providing the chance to secure their own income through the sale of original paintings, prints and products. By showcasing and selling artwork via ArtLifting, artists gain self-confidence that permeates all aspects of their lives. During this lunchtime presentation, we learned about the innovative mission of the organization, as well as the personal and professional impact it’s having in the lives of the artists.

OCTOBER 2022: HARVEY B. GANTT CENTER FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN ARTS + CULTURE

Our Charlotte-area colleagues took place in a guided tour where they learned more about African American culture and history from trained museum professionals, and gained a deeper understanding of the cultural and historical context of the artwork and artifacts on display.

RECRUITING COMMITTEE

MISSION

Ensure that our hiring practices are fair, equitable and non-discriminative, and strive to evaluate qualified candidates that are diverse across gender, race, ethnicity, disability, and veteran status, among others.

MEMBERS

Latondra Riley, Blake Bickmore, Sagar Rathie and Jack Barnett

EXECUTIVE SPONSORS

Tracy Chambers and Jason LaBonte

Grand Opening, NOVEL Edgehill, Nashville

• With support from the committee, Crescent Communities increased diverse hiring sources by 25% to support the diversity of our applicant pool. The team maximized posts for roles on job boards and expanded the search for candidates belonging to specific diversity-oriented groups and organizations.

• As a result of this intentional recruitment strategy, we extended offers to two of our diverse summer associates for full-time opportunities in 2022, both of which were accepted.

• Hosted nine summer associates in 2022, including four diverse students and one veteran.

• Expanded partnerships with external organizations including Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

• Developed guide for creating inclusive job descriptions.

• Delivered scholarships to both a NC A&T State University student and a summer associate involved with the Project Destined Program (see next page).

• Attended career fairs and hiring events to seek diverse talent at a variety of new schools, broadening our reach to include NC A&T State University, East Carolina, UNC-Chapel Hill, Appalachian State University, and Middle Tennessee State University.

• Partnered with Veteran organizations including Hire GI and Special Operators Transition Foundation (SOTF).

• Implemented Interview Training for leaders in order to mitigate bias during the process.

• Completed and communicated clear job progression paths for most roles.

Summer Associates at Second Harvest Food Bank Volunteer Event

PROJECT DESTINED

Crescent Communities is proud to partner with Project Destined, a leading social impact platform that empowers students from underrepresented communities through training in financial literacy, entrepreneurship and real estate. Project Destined interns learn the basics of financial literacy and real estate investing through a blend of live courses and e-learning grounded in ownership, investing and financial health. Throughout the eight-week-long program, interns are supported by their mentors as they learn and develop their own professional networks. The program culminates in a live event where interns present a real estate investment opportunity to a panel of executives and compete for the opportunity to win scholarships.

In 2022, Crescent Communities sponsored an incredible group of eight undergraduate students to participate. The experience culminated with a competition against other Project Destined teams across the country. The Crescent-sponsored team secured a FIRST PLACE win in their division competition!

Crescent Communities and Project Destined Team

For the summer of my freshman year at NC A&T , I knew that I wanted to get my hands on an internship to propel my professional career. Participating in Project Destined was instrumental in achieving that goal. If it were not for the pivotal interactions that Project Destined allowed me to make in tandem with the inviting culture of Crescent Communities, I would not have had the distinguished opportunity to directly contribute to my career goal of working in commercial real estate.

In addition to sponsoring the Project Destined team, Crescent Communities was honored to host a summer associate from the program to join us and experience real estate development first-hand. Isaac Allen is a freshman at NC A&T, and in 2022, he joined Crescent Communities as a summer associate on the Capital Markets team. Isaac did an exceptional job during his time with the company and created such a positive impression that he was offered an additional $5,000 scholarship from Crescent Communities at the conclusion of his program.

BRENDAN PIERCE, CRESCENT COMMUNITIES PRESIDENT OF COMMERCIAL

We are so proud to be involved with Project Destined. It has been a game changer for not only the young adults participating in the program but also for Crescent and its colleagues. Project Destined offers college students access to best-in-class firms and helps them explore a career in Commercial Real Estate. For Crescent, we are presented a diverse and impressive pool of talent to eventually add to our team. Crescent is focused on increasing our company’s diversity and Project Destined is the perfect partner to make this happen.

ISAAC ALLEN, SUMMER ASSOCIATE AT CRESCENT COMMUNITIES

PARTNERSHIPS COMMITTEE

MISSION

Support partnerships that foster diversity and equity. This task force will actively seek diverse vendor relationships in all areas of construction and business operations.

MEMBERS

Jonathan Bedford, Darek Burns, Erika Ruane, Elizabeth McMillan, Eric Rothrock and Jason Lotz

EXECUTIVE SPONSORS

Tracy Chambers

Minority and Small Business Outreach Event

• Crescent Communities increased Minority and Women Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) participation to 5%.

• Introduced diverse business owners to opportunities within Crescent Communities through several informational events.

4TH ANNUAL MINORITY AND SMALL BUSINESS OUTREACH

Our 4th Annual Minority and Small Business Outreach event included over 75 vendors, general contractors and subcontractor partners. Our colleagues spoke about our pipeline of development activity in the Charlotte and Raleigh areas. Representatives from our key general contract partners including Blythe Development, JE Dunn Construction, Swinerton, Gilbane Building Company, C4 Builders LLC and Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC were also in attendance to network and encourage participation with minority groups across our development footprint.

• Our committee continued to refine our process for tracking our monetary level of engagement with minority vendors in our accounting software, and instituted new goals. New forms for capturing this vital information were introduced to the entire Crescent Communities team.

• We instituted new policies to ensure that our general contractor partners will solicit bids of at least one MWBE vendor for each trade for work.

Visit to Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts & Culture, Charlotte

DEVELOPING SKILLS FOR FUTURE LEADERS

Crescent Communities is honored to establish a partnership with the Community Building Initiative (CBI), a non-profit organization with a mission to give people and organizations the knowledge, skills and courage to fight bias, remove barriers to opportunity and build a more equitable Charlotte-Mecklenburg area.

For each of the last three years, two rising leaders within our organization have been chosen to participate in CBI’s LU40 program (Leadership Under 40). These young leaders will use the knowledge they gain through the program to help affect change within Crescent Communities, in the real estate development industry, and throughout the greater community. Past participants include Ruth Evans, James Richardson, Violet Iwata-Dean, and Shep Reynolds.

Current LU40 Participants:

JACK BARNETT Financial Associate

MATTHEW BOX Senior Director of Construction

THE ROC CHARLOTTE

The ROC is a nonprofit organization partnering with Central Piedmont Community College to provide opportunities to select high school juniors to introduce them to construction technology. The program allows students to earn dual high school and college credits. Not only does our President of Construction, Daniel Cooper, serve on the board for this impactful organization, our team hosts groups of students on our jobsites throughout the year to offer an overview of construction activities taking place in real time.

KESHA SMITH, CONTRACTS COORDINATOR

Crescent Communities is one of the first corporate companies that I have ever been a part of that goes beyond the boundaries of diversity. They are always willing to learn about other cultures, ethnicities, and things that are out of the norm or scope of what “Corporate America looks like.” They accept individuals as they are with the understanding that we are all different but with gained wisdom and knowledge, in addition to eradicating fear we can impact the world as a unit. Crescent understands that we all come from different cultures and backgrounds, and they use this advantage beautifully to enhance the growth of the company.

WOMEN IN REAL ESTATE GROUP

The Crescent Communities Women’s Group consists of voluntary participants across business units and levels of leadership. Participation is open to all colleagues of Crescent Communities. The Group formally began meeting in spring of 2019 to explore opportunities to assist the women of Crescent Communities with career development, skill refinement and community building opportunities. Through this initiative, Crescent Communities hosts events, guest speakers and other initiatives designed to help women reach their full potential.

HARVESTING CONNECTIONS WOMEN’S EVENT

On October 27th, Crescent Communities partnered with the leaders of the women’s group at Turner Construction, “Building Turner Women,” to present the 5th annual Harvesting Connections event, an opportunity for women in the real estate and construction industry to explore tools to overcome shared challenges and connect with supportive women in the industry. The well-attended and highly inspiring event was led by Stacy Cassio, CEO of the Pink Mentor Network. Donations were accepted for Dress for Success Charlotte. All attendees left the event with new connections and a positive outlook for the future!

OUR 2022 WORKFORCE COMPOSITION

(EXCLUDES SUMMER ASSOCIATES) 66.7% White

NEW HIRES (12/31/2022) 73.2% Male 85.7% White 11.1% Black 22.2% Hispanic or Latino

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6.3%