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S&P 100 firms drop board diversity criteria at record pace
Since 2023, 61 S&P 100 companies removed explicit diversity provisions for future directors, and the retreat also spread to CEO succession criteria at several firms.
Companies across the S&P 100 have rolled back explicit board diversity criteria, with an ESGAUGE analysis of filings and governance documents reviewed by Bloomberg News showing that 61 firms have eliminated DEI-related director language since 2023.
Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Starbucks and Wells Fargo are among the companies that have removed diversity provisions for directors in the last three years, according to the analysis cited by Insurance Journal. The pullback began in 2023 and accelerated over the past year as the Trump administration moved to dismantle DEI programs across federal agencies, universities and government contractors, the outlet reports.
The shift is not limited to board selection. Insurance Journal notes that six companies, Advanced Micro Devices, Capital One, Microsoft, Starbucks, Uber Technologies and Wells Fargo, adopted similar diversity criteria for CEO succession, but all but Microsoft later removed that language.
Insurance Journal also says that companies with Rooney Rule-like provisions tied to diversity consideration for leadership roles have fallen sharply, to 12% from 58% over the past year, based on the ESGAUGE data. Heather Spilsbury, CEO of 50/50 Women on Boards, described it as easier to tear down than build up in efforts aimed at gender parity in boardrooms.