Dive Brief:
- C-suite endorsement of companywide diversity, equity and inclusion efforts has decreased 18% in the past two years, according to an April 19 press release from research firm DDI.
- In fact, the report reflected an increase in companies that did not offer DEI programs: From 2020 to now, the number jumped from 15% to 20%.
- This decline in support for inclusion and belonging work “has left many leaders, especially those who are women and from minority racial and ethnic backgrounds, questioning their company and role," DDI Center for Analytics and Behavioral Research Director Stephanie Neal said.
Dive Insight:
Labor experts and DEI advocates continue to grapple with whether the foundation laid in 2020 remains solid. A Glassdoor report released in late 2022 suggested that DEI progress has stalled. By Glassdoor’s count, the number of diversity and inclusion initiatives cataloged jumped from 29% in 2019 to 43% in 2021, but that rate dipped slightly to 41% in 2022.
Similarly, a Gartner report released in January suggested that leaders are lackadaisical in adopting inclusion-focused values, with DEI leaders expressing exasperation at the lack of buy-in from business leaders.
Addressing this trend, labor experts have confirmed to HR Dive that business leaders’ hands are slipping off the wheel when it comes to DEI. The solution? HR managers can draw out the ways in which inclusion and belonging are tenets of employee engagement — a key battleground in the ongoing war for talent.
