Over half of CEOs say their business is falling behind in diversity
Over half (52%) of CEOs believe their organisations lag in workforce diversity, with 37% of chief HR officers sharing this sentiment, according to research by The IN Group.
To address this, 76% of executives have implemented diversity and inclusion strategies in their approach to hiring technology talent, the study revealed.
Despite these efforts, 38% of companies feel they are generally falling behind in diversity, with the issue being particularly pronounced in the United States, where 48% acknowledge the problem.
The lack of diversity is especially evident in technology teams, where 38% admit they are not making sufficient progress.
A report from BCS highlighted a significant gender gap, projecting that it will take 283 years for women to achieve equal representation in the tech workforce if current trends persist without intervention.
In addition to diversity, other top boardroom priorities include sustainability, cyber security, and AI, prompting many companies to realign their strategies accordingly.
Positively, 73% of executives consider sustainability a key aspect of their technology strategy, with numerous organisations aiming to reduce carbon emissions to minimise their environmental impact.
Rich Lewis Jones, CEO, Sigma Labs: "It's not just about traditional ways to bring people into a business - top performing talent exists throughout society and critically can be catalysed through education, training and belief. Winning this battle means higher loyalty, greater commitment, skill sets you can define, greater team engagement and of course, higher ROI on your talent."
Prof Alexeis Garcia Perez, Professor of Digital Business and Society, Aston Business School commented: "Despite successes in strategy implementation for tech talent recruitment, there remains a notable percentage of executives who believe their companies are falling behind in fostering a diverse workforce. This disconnect points to the complexities of implementing effective diversity and inclusion policies and the need for more focused efforts in this area."