The corporate diversity research team at the Center for ESG Research aims to tackle a set of intellectual questions about diversity and inclusion in the context of modern business organizations. We investigate not only normative questions (that is, for instance, is diversity a value in and of itself, and why? Should companies increase or decrease the level of diversity in their organizations along the lines of gender, ethnicity, or culture, and why?), but also substantive and empirical questions (e.g., effects of diversity on organizational outcomes or the lack thereof). For example, should we care that less than 25 of S&P 500 companies in the US are led by a female CEO? For another, many recent studies have affirmed that more diverse companies are more likely to outperform less diverse peers on a wide range of economic outcomes. Yet, the overall progress towards diversity or equal representation continues to be slow. How can we explain such a discrepancy? To give another example, the latest data show that the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected minorities and women. What will be the long-term effects on corporate diversity in the coming years and decades? Our researchers strive to answer some of these difficult questions with rigorous and creative research.
