While several major companies and organizations are eliminating or scaling back diversity programs under conservative pressure and amid a push to exorcise them from the federal government, some others, including Delta Airlines and the NBA\u2019s Cleveland Cavaliers, say they\u2019re standing firm in the shifting political winds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDEI is not something that\u2019s going to stop at Delta Airlines,\u201d said Eric Hendricks, Delta\u2019s director of pilot outreach, adding that the airline still has recruiting and training events for marginalized groups scheduled throughout the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re pressing on,\u201d Hendricks said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Cleveland Cavaliers, which incorporated DEI policies to the front office in 2019, is also keeping the initiatives intact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is just how we go about things,\u201d said Kevin Clayton, the Cavs\u2019 executive vice president, chief equity and impact officer. \u201cWe believe that everybody in our organization, every person in our community, is part of our diversity, equity and inclusion story. So it\u2019s not about any one group. This work is about humanity. We know that our platform is one that can uplift our community \u2014 everyone in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sacha Thompson, a Maryland-based inclusive workplace consultant, said the pushback against DEI did not come as a surprise. \u201cFor one, Trump said what he would do. But also, anytime there\u2019s progress in this country, there\u2019s always going to be some level of regression or pushback,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Thompson predicted many of these companies will hold onto these programs because \u201cthere is a business imperative to keeping them,\u201d as well as a moral imperative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the right thing to do,\u201d said Fatimah Gilliam, <\/strong>who heads the New York-based DEI consulting firm Azara Group. \u201cThese companies understand the business case and the value of DEI,\u201d which she said ranges from boosting innovation, retention and profitability, to reducing employee turnover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many companies, she noted, \u201chave a diverse customer base, and they have a diverse employee base,\u201d as well, and executives \u201cunderstand that aspect, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Less than five years after corporations across the country made implemented policies to bolster diversity and equity following the police murder of George Floyd in May 2020, many of them have quietly \u2014 or loudly \u2014 scaled back their efforts.\u2002The list includes Walmart,\u2002<\/a>Ford, McDonald\u2019s and Target, among many others that have announced revisions since President Donald Trump won re-election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Anti-DEI activist Robby Starbuck and other conservatives have helped heap public pressure on major consumer brands, often using social media to single out companies that have stood by diversity and inclusion programs. Trump\u2019s executive order, two days after his inauguration, to end DEI in the federal government has put wind in the sails of efforts to dismantle DEI initiatives in the private sector, even though his move doesn\u2019t directly affect those companies. Many of them, eyeing these developments, are now feeling the pressure and may acquiesce, DEI experts say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s especially true for businesses that have not blended diversity initiatives into their culture yet, Thompson said. If DEI has been \u201cpart of the organization\u2019s DNA,\u201d she said, there\u2019s a better chance it would remain that way. \u201cWhen it is separate and apart, it\u2019s easier to cut off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Research has shown<\/a> that companies with diversity and equity platforms perform better financially than those that do not. A\u20022023 McKinsey study showed<\/a>, for example, that companies with women on executive teams had a 39% higher likelihood of profitability. And that can be a driving factor of why leaders from companies like Costco<\/a>, JPMorgan, Apple and others have said they will continue diversity efforts \u2014 even when they have signaled openness<\/a> to working with<\/a> the Trump White House on other fronts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen these companies that have kept it look at their data and say, \u2018We\u2019re not stopping these programs,\u2019 it says to me that they are seeing a result that is tied to their bottom line,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cAnd there\u2019s nothing wrong with that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Conservatives have the political upper hand, including control of all three branches of the federal government, so it takes \u201ccourageous leadership\u201d for companies to stick with DEI, said Anthony P. Howard, who has worked in human resources for more than 20 years, including at two Fortune 500 companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Standing up to preserve DEI initiatives increases the level of loyalty and commitment to that company, he said, \u201cbecause now they\u2019re standing out among the crowd and against something that doesn\u2019t support equal opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tana M. Session, a veteran diversity and inclusion leader in California, said private organizations like Delta and the Cavaliers are positioning themselves for the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey are able to let that be their compass and not be dissuaded or discouraged by the noise,\u201d Session said. \u201cThey are standing 10 toes down, holding to the middle ground, and they will see the benefits on the back end.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gilliam, from Azara Group, said she has heard from corporate leaders who are fearful of potential repercussions and could waver on keeping DEI. But those sticking with it have \u201cinvested a lot of time, effort and money into building up their infrastructure, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n National Urban League president Marc Morial promised a fight on this front earlier this month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe stand against any effort by anyone through any method to reverse the gains made over the last 70 years,\u201d Morial said in a roundtable about DEI with more than a dozen organizations, thought leaders and attorneys. \u201cAnd we stand against efforts by this administration to repel, to undercut or undermine the hard work of many generations of Americans through what we call unlawful, extra-constitutional and ill-advised acts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some companies, like Target, could feel the wrath of consumers \u2014 especially people of color who may favor other stores for rolling back its DEI program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat they\u2019re going to see is their consumers making a quick pivot to buying directly from the vendors, especially the vendors of color and women,\u201d Session said. Target, in particular, made efforts to feature products by Black-\u2002<\/a>and Latino-owned businesses<\/a> on its shelves, and for years has carried LGBTQ Pride-related merchandise<\/a>. \u201cSo not so much a boycott but taking our consumerism in a different direction. The game is changing and how companies are impacted will change, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n