Sixth Annual Diversity Package Unveils Organizations Successfully Embracing Inclusion Across Four Key Areas: Board of Directors, Employee Base, Senior Management and Supplier Diversity
The Great Recession particularity challenged the value of inclusion as corporations restructured operations, slashed budgets, and laid off thousands of workers. It’s amidst this backdrop that BLACK ENTERPRISE unveils its sixth annual listing of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity. The companies featured in the publication’s July issue and accompanied by a package on http://www.blackenterprise.com/ demonstrated a commitment to diversity in one or more of four key areas: board of directors, employee base, senior management and supplier diversity.
“Although they have been forced to make organizational changes in the current environment, these companies have maintained their commitment to diversity across the board. They realize that hiring diverse employees and leveraging differences sharpens their competitive edge.”
“As the economy recovers, the organizations on our list of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity continue to use inclusion as part of their business strategy,” said Careers/Lifestyle Editorial Director Sonia Alleyne. “Although they have been forced to make organizational changes in the current environment, these companies have maintained their commitment to diversity across the board. They realize that hiring diverse employees and leveraging differences sharpens their competitive edge.”
Of the 40 best, McDonald’s Corp. and WGL Holdings Inc. demonstrated significant strengths in all four areas surveyed. Burger King Corp., Pepco Holdings Inc., PG&E Corp., Sodexo Inc., Sprint Nextel Corp., TIAA-CREF and Xerox Corp were cited as solid in three. Making their first appearance on this list are Norfolk Southern Corp. and the U.S. Postal Service.
The full list of the Black Enterprise 40 Best Companies for Diversity is as follows:
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Arkansas |
Michigan |
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| WAL-MART STORES INC., Bentonville | FORD MOTOR CO., Dearborn | ||
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California |
Minnesota |
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| PG&E CORP., San Francisco | GENERAL MILLS INC., Minneapolis | ||
| SEMPRA ENERGY, San Diego | |||
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Nevada |
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Connecticut |
MGM MIRAGE, Las Vegas | ||
| AETNA INC., Hartford | |||
| PITNEY BOWES, Stamford |
New Jersey |
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| XEROX CORP, Norwalk | VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC., Basking Ridge | ||
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District of Columbia |
New York |
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| FANNIE MAE, Washington | AMERICAN EXPRESS CO., New York | ||
| PEPCO HOLDINGS INC., Washington | INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP. (IBM), Armonk | ||
| U.S. POSTAL SERVICE, Washington | PEPSICO INC., Purchase | ||
| WGL HOLDINGS INC., Washington | STARWOOD HOTELS & RESORTS WORLDWIDE, White Plains | ||
| TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA INC., New York | |||
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Florida |
North Carolina |
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| BURGER KING CORP., Miami | BANK OF AMERICA CORP., Charlotte | ||
| DARDEN RESTAURANTS INC., Orlando | TIAA-CREF, Charlotte | ||
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Georgia |
Ohio |
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| AFLAC INC., Columbus | PROCTER & GAMBLE CO., Cincinnati | ||
| THE COCA-COLA CO., Atlanta | |||
| UPS, Atlanta |
Pennsylvania |
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| ARAMARK, Philadelphia | |||
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Illinois |
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| MCDONALD'S CORP., Oak Brook |
Tennessee |
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| NORTHERN TRUST CORP., Chicago | FEDEX CORP., Memphis | ||
| STATE FARMS INSURANCE COS., Bloomington | |||
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Texas |
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Kansas |
AT&T INC., Dallas | ||
| SPRINT NEXTEL CORP., Overland Park | COMERICA INC., Dallas | ||
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Kentucky |
Virginia |
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| YUM! BRANDS INC., Louisville | FREDDIE MAC, McLean | ||
| NORFOLK SOUTHERN CORP., Norfolk | |||
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Maryland |
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| MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL INC., Bethesda | |||
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SODEXO INC., Gaithersburg |
To select our 2010 companies, BLACK ENTERPRISE sent surveys to the nation’s top 1,000 companies as well as to the 50 leading global companies with strong U.S. operations. The questionnaire focused on the participation of African Americans and members of other ethnic minority groups as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Because of the high number of job losses since the recession, a heavier weighting was applied to the senior management and supplier diversity areas. The final scores, along with the results of reporting and research conducted by the editorial staff, were used to determine the 40 Best Companies for Diversity.
The complete report, including methodology and selection criteria, is available in the July issue of BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine, on newsstands June 29.
