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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Eryn Feinsod
+1 212 398 9556 x235
efeinsod@aesc.org
ARE COMPANIES PAYING LIP SERVICE TO DIVERSITY?
76% OF SENIOR EXECUTIVES REPORT 0-1 MINORITIES IN TOP RANKS OF THEIR COMPANIES
Yet 54% of Companies Have Official Workplace Diversity Policy, According to Latest BlueSteps Diversity Report
New York, 17 January, 2008 — According to the latest BlueSteps Diversity Report from the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC), 76 percent of 357 global senior executives report their companies have one or no minorities among its top executives. This lack of diversity at the top exists despite the fact that the majority of respondents (54%) say their companies do have an official "diversity in the workplace" policy. The survey was conducted from November 14 – December 13, 2007 by BlueSteps, the career management service of the AESC.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, minorities make up 17 percent of the workforce, with that number expected to increase to 20 percent by 2016. Women currently represent 46 percent of the workforce; the number of women in the labor force is expected to grow faster than the number of men through 2016.
A similar survey was conducted for the June 2005 BlueSteps Diversity Report. A comparison of 2005 and 2007 survey results finds a slight decline — from 59% to 54% — in the percentage of respondents reporting that their companies currently have an official diversity policy in place. On a regional level, the majority of executives from North America and Asia Pacific, 61% and 50% respectively, say their companies have official diversity policies, while the majority of European executives (54%) said they do not.
Full results from the 2007 global report show:
| "How many women are there among your company's top executives?" | |
| 0 - 29% 1 - 27% 2 - 17% 3 - 11% |
4 - 4% 5 - 2% 6 or more - 10% |
| "How many minorities are there among your company's top executives?" | |
| 0 - 55% 1 - 21% 2 - 11% 3 - 4% |
4 - 3% 5 - 1% 6 or more - 5% |
| "Does your company have an official 'diversity in the workplace' policy?" | |
| Yes - 54% No - 41% Do not know - 5% | |
AESC president Peter Felix noted, "While many companies have made inroads to reflect the demographics of their customers through diversity in the workforce, they don't have an effective strategy for extending this commitment to the Boardroom or the C-suite. With the rapid globalization of markets and the changing face of competition, companies need a way to attract senior-level diversity candidates if they are to effectively compete and be considered employers of choice. Executive search consultants often help build a strategy for creating a board that reflects and relates to a company's specific needs and that better mirrors its customer base."
About BlueSteps.com
BlueSteps.com is an online global database of senior executives. As an exclusive service of the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC), BlueSteps.com enables executives to remain accessible to all member firms of the AESC. AESC members use the database as an additional resource in the initial candidate and source identification process. For more information about BlueSteps.com, visit www.bluesteps.com.
About The Association of Executive Search Consultants
The Association of Executive Search Consultants is the worldwide professional association for the retained executive search industry. The AESC's mission is to promote the highest professional standards in retained executive search consulting, broaden public understanding of the executive search process, and serve as an advocate for the interests of its member firms. For more information, or to download the AESC Code of Ethics and Professional Practice Guidelines, please visit www.aesc.org.