Ray Arata

Ray Arata is an award-winning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) leader, keynote speaker, author, and coach whose work has influenced how organizations approach inclusive leadership. Arata engages in what he calls deep inclusion work with men and serves as a leadership coach, inclusion consultant, and cultural facilitator. After a 16-year career as a financial advisor, a personal turning point led to his commitment to personal development. He became a certified life planner and money coach, and later transitioned to business and leadership coaching, focusing on supporting men in their roles as fathers, husbands, leaders, and professionals.

Arata founded the Better Man Conference to provide men with opportunities to explore their roles as allies for inclusion. The Better Man Conference is a one-day event offering resources, support, and community for engaging men as allies in creating inclusive workplace cultures. Participants gain perspectives on best practices for allyship, exclusion behaviors, and strategies for building balanced organizational dynamics. The inaugural conference drew 150 attendees and doubled in size the following year, with companies sending delegations prior to the #MeToo movement. As co-founder of Better Man Leadership, Arata works to transform the gender perspective within organizations, engaging stakeholders including customers, employees, investors, partners, and the global community.

Arata has dedicated more than 15,000 hours to advancing emotional literacy and intelligence among men through the ManKind Project. His experience spans boardrooms, men's retreats, and maximum security prisons. He is a recognized DEI leader, speaker, consultant, and trainer, with global clients such as PwC, Verizon, Toyota, and Bloomberg. He has also presented to corporate leaders from Visa, Microsoft, eBay, Intel, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Kaiser Permanente, PG&E, and Genentech.

Arata is the author of two books. His first book, "Wake Up, Man Up, Step Up," addresses how outdated definitions of masculinity can hinder success in personal and professional roles, offering a roadmap for transforming behaviors to foster healthier relationships. In his second book, "Showing Up," Arata critiques mainstream gender training and introduces a heart-based leadership approach he has implemented with companies including Verizon, Bloomberg, Moody's, Intel, Toyota, and Hearst.

Arata has been recognized as a Male Champion of Change by the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of UN Women and received the Ron Herring Award. As a keynote speaker, Arata delivers presentations on inclusivity, leadership, and allyship, providing organizations with insights for building inclusive cultures.