CLOSING THE GAP

Not a week goes by that I don’t see a report that shocks me with the dramatic lack of equity in the business world. New research from the Knight Foundation revealed that only 1.4% of the more than $82 trillion in U.S.-based assets is managed by firms owned or run by women or people of color. I was so struck by that number — it’s so tiny — I had to ask the Knight Foundation three times if I was reading it right.

But no indeed, that’s not a typo: 98.6% of all U.S.-based assets are managed by firms owned or run by white men, according to research conducted by Bella Private Markets. Which means, if you’re wondering who’s making decisions about what companies or sectors to invest in — it’s largely white men.

The Knight Foundation wanted to shed light on this dramatic homogeneity because the organization doesn’t think it’s right — and it doesn’t make sense. Its $3 billion endowment is more than a third managed by diverse-owned firms, which, CEO Alberto Ibarguen points out, are more likely to yield higher returns. He writes in an op-ed in Barron’s: “Diversity is a hedge and can increase opportunity. Likewise, a diverse team of managers can identify investment opportunities more traditional managers might overlook. They bring new perspectives — for example, to assessing risk in traditional or emerging markets.”

Knight surveyed the country’s biggest foundations to determine how much of their investment portfolio is managed by diverse firms. This year 60% participated and of those, 17% of their assets were managed by diverse-owned firms, far better than the average. Ibarguen calls on all major foundations to self-report on the percentage of their assets under management with diverse-owned firms — and for the IRS to consider requiring such a disclosure. This isn’t just to benefit diverse money managers, but because diverse management better serves investors. 

Another study out this week showed just how meaningful it is when companies disclose their diversity numbers and make a pledge to change. Catalyst, a global nonprofit focused on helping build workplaces that work for women, has 70 CEOs who have pledged to advance women across ethnic and racial groups into leadership roles, as part of its “Champions For Change” program.

New metrics out from some of those Champion companies found that in 2020, they promoted women at slightly higher proportions than men into senior leadership positions. The Champion companies also outpaced their peers in the Fortune 500 in terms of women’s representation at the board of directors level, with 32.2% female representation, compared with a 26.5% average for the Fortune 500.

In light of the fact that women were more likely to leave the workforce during the Covid pandemic, Catalyst is calling on companies to develop new initiatives to focus on the reentry, recruitment, advancement and retention of women. A key piece of the puzzle: tracking and measuring progress against defined goals.

In my work I think a lot about the old adage, you can’t be what you can’t see. I think there’s another key one when it comes to changing diversity numbers: it’s hard to change what you don’t measure. The more transparency there is, the easier it will be to push for equity — whether it’s in promotions, board representation or asset management.

What type of transparency would you like to see in your company? Share your thoughts with us at askmakeit@cnbc.com. 

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