Plenary Session: The Board’s Role in Addressing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Systemic Racism

Announcing commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) can be easy. A press release does it. Delivering on those commitments can be hard. This panel will address the difficult, pragmatic challenges of living up to the various DEI demands facing corporations from the boardroom to the factory floor. The panel will explore strategies for diversifying the larger workforce and building an inclusive culture, including how to measure progress and hold management accountable. Some corporations are modifying education requirements by dropping demands for a college degree and recruiting from historically black colleges and universities that were never before part of their recruitment programs. Other corporations are considering novel outreach, hiring, and training programs, including support for online skill-based certification in lieu of formal education. In addition, some institutional investors are asking companies to engage third parties to conduct racial justice audits to assess how systemic racism affects the company’s policies and business practices, including review of human capital management, the companies’ products and services, and its philanthropic and political contributions. The panelists will discuss these tough, controversial issues and grapple with the best practices available to directors facing these challenges.