Axios has a story saying that "the last two years have brought scores of new hires, new ideas and new funding to corporate diversity, equity and inclusion," and that appears to be "a clear business case for prioritizing DEI at work beyond lip service. Workforces with a variety of experiences and perspectives can make better-informed decisions and generate more creative strategies, experts say.
"A McKinsey study found that the most diverse companies were a whopping 36% more profitable in 2019 than their least diverse counterparts."
However, Axios writes, challenges remain: "Many companies hire people of color and then can't retain them because they haven't addressed issues of workplace racism, so employees face microaggressions or hurdles to advancement and end up quitting, according to Dee C. Marshall, CEO of Diverse & Engaged, a consulting and talent recruitment firm."
In addition, DEI budgets also are "the first to go in an economic downturn, Marshall says. And if companies make commitments to change for one year, some drop those obligations the following year.
"Another problem is that 'DEI' as a term is too broad … Companies can't make progress until they get specific about what exactly they want to address."
This creates problems for DEI officers, the story says - there may be more of them in corporate America, "but the turnover rate for those positions is averaging just three years, per LinkedIn data."
- KC's View:
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Companies where both management the front lines look like America are intellectually and emotionally richer for their diversity - they have a better understanding of the marketplace, and can provide answers to questions that the older versions of these companies didn't even know to ask. But, go figure, it requires a sustained commitment.
