(New York, NY) June 29, 2010The Great Recession particularity challenged the value of inclusion as corporations restructured operations, slashed budgets, and laid off thousands of workers. Its amidst this backdrop that BLACK ENTERPRISE unveils its sixth annual listing of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity. The companies featured in the publications July issue and accompanied by a package at www.blackenterprise.com/magazine demonstrated a commitment to diversity in one or more of four key areas: board of directors, employee base, senior management and supplier diversity.
As the economy recovers, the organizations on our list of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity continue to use inclusion as part of their business strategy, said Careers/Lifestyle Editorial Director Sonia Alleyne. Although they have been forced to make organizational changes in the current environment, these companies have maintained their commitment to diversity across the board. They realize that hiring diverse employees and leveraging differences sharpens their competitive edge.
Of the 40 best, McDonalds Corp. and WGL Holdings Inc. demonstrated significant strengths in all four areas surveyed. Burger King Corp., Pepco Holdings Inc., PG&E Corp., Sodexo Inc., Sprint Nextel Corp., TIAA-CREF and Xerox Corp were cited as solid in three. Making their first appearance on this list are Norfolk Southern Corp. and the U.S. Postal Service.
The full list of the Black Enterprise 40 Best Companies for Diversity is as follows:
Arkansas Michigan
WAL-MART STORES INC., Bentonville FORD MOTOR CO., Dearborn
California Minnesota
PG&E CORP., San Francisco GENERAL MILLS INC., Minneapolis
SEMPRA ENERGY, San Diego
Nevada
Connecticut MGM MIRAGE, Las Vegas
AETNA INC., Hartford
PITNEY BOWES, Stamford New Jersey
XEROX CORP, Norwalk VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC., Basking Ridge
District of Columbia New York
FANNIE MAE, Washington AMERICAN EXPRESS CO., New York
PEPCO HOLDINGS INC., Washington INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP. (IBM), Armonk
U.S. POSTAL SERVICE, Washington PEPSICO INC., Purchase
WGL HOLDINGS INC., Washington STARWOOD HOTELS & RESORTS WORLDWIDE, White Plains
Florida
North Carolina
BURGER KING CORP., Miami BANK OF AMERICA CORP., Charlotte
DARDEN RESTAURANTS INC., Orlando TIAA-CREF, Charlotte
Georgia Ohio
AFLAC INC., Columbus PROCTER & GAMBLE CO., Cincinnati
THE COCA-COLA CO., Atlanta
UPS, Atlanta Pennsylvania
ARAMARK, Philadelphia
Illinois
MCDONALD'S CORP., Oak Brook Tennessee
NORTHERN TRUST CORP., Chicago FEDEX CORP., Memphis
STATE FARMS INSURANCE COS., Bloomington
Texas
Kansas AT&T INC., Dallas
SPRINT NEXTEL CORP., Overland Park COMERICA INC., Dallas
Kentucky Virginia
YUM! BRANDS INC., Louisville FREDDIE MAC, McLean
NORFOLK SOUTHERN CORP., Norfolk
Maryland
MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL INC., Bethesda
SODEXO INC., Gaithersburg
To select our 2010 companies, BLACK ENTERPRISE sent surveys to the nations top 1,000 companies as well as to the 50 leading global companies with strong U.S. operations. The questionnaire focused on the participation of African Americans and members of other ethnic minority groups as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Because of the high number of job losses since the recession, a heavier weighting was applied to the senior management and supplier diversity areas. The final scores, along with the results of reporting and research conducted by the editorial staff, were used to determine the 40 Best Companies for Diversity.
The complete report, including methodology and selection criteria, is available in the July issue of BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine, on newsstands June 29.