Work Diversity

LAST FEBRUARY, WE published a special report, "Are Diversity Programs Benefiting African Americans?" The report revealed that while these programs are effective at removing the subtle barriers to advancement, they do so only when companies place diversity at the top of their organizational goals. In the year since, we've wanted to see what kind of progress corporate America has made. What we've found is that while there is headway, it's not time to celebrate yet.

There has been a steady increase in the number of companies with diversity initiatives over the past year, according to Michelle Smead, vice president of executive search consulting at A.T. Kearney in Chicago. Author of a 1996 study by the search firm on corporate diversity efforts, Smead found 74% of Fortune 500 companies reported having a diversity program in place, with 62% of those programs having been developed in the previous five years.

"As diversity becomes a major strategic issue for companies, more managers are being compensated based on their support of those initiatives, including hiring goals." Smead believes the increase in minority searches is evidence that senior managers are starting to take diversity seriously.

To wit, according to the Labor Department, blacks compiled 10.7% of the U.S. workforce, 7.1% of which were employed in executive, managerial and administrative positions in 1996. By comparison, in 1997, those numbers increased slightly to 10.8% of the workforce and 7.4% of management positions.

Sadly, the good news appears to be confined to large companies. "While some smaller organizations can be pretty progressive, most of them don't feel the same pressure (from shareholders or existing employees) to pursue diversity initiatives," according to Michael Wheeler, author of the Conference Board report, "Corporate Practices in Diversity Measurement."