Diversity Insight: Set up to fail!

Chief Diversity Officers need more than a title to succeed.

Fail! It is a strong word choice for a headline but, unfortunately, not far from the truth. A recent survey conducted by executive search consultancy Russell Reynolds of 234 diversity executives employed at companies on the S&P 500 found that, despite an influx of new chief diversity officer positions, few CDOs are given the resources and support they need to succeed.

Four Critical Challenges CDOs Face

Credit union executives and board members should be mindful of the following four critical challenges as they consider the appropriate organizational infrastructure to support diversity and inclusion.

  1. The Chief Diversity Officer role is new. Sixty three percent of CDOs who participated in the survey were hired or promoted in the past three years. Additionally, only 47% of companies on the S&P 500 reported having a CDO or equivalent.

 

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