We know that diversity and inclusion will be a top priority for business leaders in 2021. Customers and employees are paying close attention to companies that have made public commitments to supporting diversity initiatives. It’s no longer enough for brands to make vague PR statements — consumers favor organizations that take real steps to promote diversity over their homogenous counterparts.
[Read more: The Ultimate Guide To Diversity Hiring In 2021]
The top companies for diversity on this list are leading by example: analysts at Forbes, Fortune, Great Place to Work, and other outlets highly rate these companies with diversity and inclusion programs. In no particular order, here are 39 of the most diverse companies and companies that embrace diversity.
Walmart
- Industry: Retail
- Number of US employees: 1.4 million
- Headquarters: Bentonville, AR
Retail powerhouse Walmart employs a massive workforce, and as a result, is one of the most diverse companies in the country. As of July 2020, Walmart’s US associates are 20.69% Black, 16.39% Latinx, and 55% women. Women make up 30% of “global officers” — leadership roles within the organization. Beyond committing to transparent diversity hiring, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation pledged to contribute $100 million over five years through a Center for Racial Equity to help address racial disparities in the U.S. in June 2020. This month, Walmart announced the first $14.3 million in grants would go to 16 different nonprofit organizations.
SAP
- Industry: IT, Internet, Software & Services
- Number of US employees: 100,330
- Headquarters: Newtown Square, PA
SAP is a global organization, with a North American headquarters in Pennsylvania but employees in more than 150 countries. Compared to industry averages, SAP has a high percentage of women in leadership positions: 27%, globally. SAP’s “Autism at Work” program employs more than 180 autistic workers, and SAP is committed to inclusivity at all stages of the hiring process (and beyond). For instance, Project Propel is a partnership between the company and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in which SAP teaches its software to undergraduate and MBA students — with the goal of building a pipeline of potential new hires from these universities.
Marriott International, Inc.
- Industry: Hospitality
- Number of employees: 174,000
- Headquarters: Bethesda, MD
Marriott was ranked on DiversityInc’s 2020 Top 50 Companies for Diversity and Forbes’ America’s Best Employers for Diversity 2020 list. Marriott has more than 800 hotels owned by women and diverse partners, with a goal to grow that number to 1,500 hotels.
This popular hotel chain is a member of many organizations that support diverse and historically excluded suppliers, such as the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, and WEConnect Internation. As such, Marriott is able to partner with more than 4,000 diverse-owned companies in various areas of their supply chain every year.
Hilton
- Industry: Hospitality
- Number of US employees: 55,281
- Headquarters: McLean, VA
Hilton consistently shows up as a top diversity company. As one employee told analysts at Great Place to Work, “They love you for who you are and want to see you succeed. You have managers from the hotel and corporate that have your back and will push you to your fullest potential. Not many companies do that for you.” Hilton offers a very transparent, comprehensive approach to diversity and inclusion for their employees:
Eli Lilly and Company
- Industry: Pharmaceuticals
- Number of employees: 38,106
- Headquarters: Indianapolis, IN
Just a few years ago, Eli Lilly would not have been considered an inclusive workplace. By the brand’s own estimate, it would have taken 70 years for the share of women in the company’s top positions to match that of men. Then, the company revamped its approach to diversity and inclusion: its brand development team created “employee journeys” to identify the enablers and barriers to the career progression of women and minorities.
Since then, Eli Lilly has won multiple accolades as one of the best diversity programs – including the prestigious Catalyst Award that highlights promising diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
“By creating narratives that were not about individual women but generalized journey experiences, women felt incredibly listened to in our company. It was describing their experience, and you could see and feel emotionally the difference. We got past the ‘Why are we working on this?’ discussion quickly to ‘We’ve got to fix this’. We don’t want that in our company.’”
– David Ricks, Eli Lilly president, and CEO.
Handshake
- Industry: IT
- Number of employees: 336
- Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
Handshake is a small company based in California that connects college students, career centers, and employers. Despite its size, Handshake has made inclusion one of its founding principles.
Since the company’s inception, it has been asking employees to participate in a diversity and inclusion survey. Last year, 91% of team members agree or strongly agree that Handshake values diversity and builds teams that are diverse. This is a 30% increase from its 2018 score. There are 11 ERGs at Handshake, including the Women @ Handshake group (pictured below).
ADP
- Industry: Management Services
- Number of employees: 58,000
- Headquarters: Roseland, NJ
ADP has been recognized by Diversity Inc.’s Top 50, Working Mother’s Best Companies for Multicultural Women, The Human Rights Campaign, and Bloomberg’s Gender Equality Index for its commitment to diversity in the workplace. In addition to creating a diverse and inclusive culture within, the company uses its brand blog to show other businesses how to do the same. ADP is a signatory of the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge and has excelled in reducing gender inequality: as of June 2020, women represented 53% percent of ADP’s global workforce and 42% percent of managers.
Accenture
- Industry: Finance and Consulting
- Number of US employees: 50,377
- Headquarters: New York, NY
Accenture stands out for its diverse leadership: CEO Julia Sweet leads a diverse team of 31.9% women executives and 41.6% minority executives. Last year, Accenture announced new goals to create a workforce that is more representative of the communities in which it works by increasing our ethnic and racial diversity hiring in South Africa, the UK, and the US by 2025. Likewise, Accenture launched the Black Founders Development Program to help Black entrepreneurs advance their technology businesses in the US.
Mastercard
- Industry: Banking
- Number of employees: 18,600
- Headquarters: Purchase, NY
Like Accenture, Mastercard is committed to investing in Black communities as part of its diversity and inclusion initiatives. Mastercard pledged to offer $500M in grants to Black communities over the next five years. In addition, Mastercard has committed to pay equality: in 2019, women earned $1.000 for every $1.000 men earned. And, in the U.S., racial and ethnic minorities earned $1.005 compared to every $1.000 earned by white employees.
Comcast NBCUniversal
- Industry: Telecommunications
- Number of employees: 143,620
- Headquarters: Philadelphia, PA
“NBC Universal is a melting pot. You work with people from all over the world and everyone is treated with respect and dignity,” said one Comcast NBCUniversal employee. In addition to increasing diversity on its board of directors, Comcast recently announced a program to help minority businesses impacted by the pandemic. Comcast RISE will initially support businesses owned by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color through grants, marketing, and technology upgrades, as well as free marketing insights.
Abbott
- Industry: Medical Device
- Number of employees: 107,000
- Headquarters: Chicago, IL
Abbott has been recognized by multiple awards for its commitment to building a diverse and inclusive environment. Currently, Abbott is focused on hiring veterans and providing mentorship opportunities in the form of structured, year-long developmental partnerships. Abbott’s careers page includes a “military skills translator” allowing veterans to search for open positions using military codes (MOS, AFSC, or NEC). In addition to offering generous maternity leave, Abbot also offers non-gendered new parent leave as part of its benefits package.
TIAA
- Industry: Finance and Banking
- Number of employees: 9,399
- Headquarters: New York, NY
To build a welcoming culture for all employees, TIAA supports a number of Business Resource Groups (BRGs), which are similar to employee resource groups (ERGs). These BRGs provide leadership development, networking opportunities, community outreach, and multicultural awareness within the company. In addition, TIAA launched its Supplier Diversity Program in 1992 to build supplier relationships with minority- and women-owned business enterprises.
Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
- Industry: Automotive
- Number of employees: 179,000
- Headquarters: Plano, TX
Toyota is consistently rated one of the best companies for diversity — spending ten consecutive years in the Top 50 Companies for Diversity list. Like TIAA, Toyota has dozens of employee-led resource groups, called Toyota’s Business Partnering Groups. These volunteer organizations work to support business objectives as well as improve the innovation pipeline at Toyota.
Toyota has also partnered with the US. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes initiative to support hiring more military veterans.
Cisco
- Industry: IT
- Number of employees: 38,990
- Headquarters: San Jose, CA
At Cisco, minorities make up nearly 50% of the workforce and 30% of the executive team. Cisco was recently named a military-friendly employer and gets plenty of accolades for its “Conscious Culture” — a key driver of employee happiness. Conscious Culture focuses on the work environment, beliefs, and principles that shape the company culture, and the employee experience: management, team, and work.
“I like that there are quite a few women of different nationalities in upper management positions at Cisco. I have not seen that in other jobs that I have had. That is promising as a woman of color myself.”
– Cisco employee, Fortune Magazine
Progressive Insurance
- Industry: Insurance
- Number of employees: 39,966
- Headquarters: Mayfield Village, OH
Progressive’s diversity and inclusion efforts focus on the employee journey and opportunities for advancement. In addition to offering ERGs, the company emphasizes promoting from within: more than one-third of Progressive people moved into a new position in 2019, and the company filled 80% of jobs above the entry-level by promoting talent. Progressive also offers a Multicultural Leadership Development Program, from which more than 60% of graduates of this are promoted into new positions.
Synchrony
- Industry: Financial Services
- Number of employees: 9,868
- Headquarters: Stamford, CT
Synchrony’s workforce is 45% non-white, 21% Black, and 63% female in the US. Last year, Synchrony committed to a new initiative, Advancing Diverse Talent, which uses data analytics to identify gaps and opportunities for better diversity hiring, talent development, and the advancement of underrepresented employees. As a result, Synchrony is partnering with HBCUs including North Carolina A&T State University, Howard University, Florida A&M University, and the University of Puerto Rico, as well as with organizations such as the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA), Disability: IN, Girls Who Code, The Asia Society, and American Indigenous Business Leaders to improve the diversity of its talent pipeline.
Mohegan Sun
- Industry: Hospitality
- Number of employees: 6,932
- Headquarters: Uncasville, CT
Mohegan Sun stands out for its focus on hiring people with disabilities. By partnering with placement and transitional programs such as Norwich Transition Academy, L.E.A.R.N., Southeastern Employment, The ARC New London, United Cerebral Palsy (UCP), and Sound Community Services, Mohegan Sun is able to achieve an 80% placement rate (the average placement rate for these kinds of programs hovers around 50%). In addition, the company is 49% minorities, owned by a Native American tribe.
“We are owned by a Native American tribe and our chief is the most wonderful, kind, and generous woman. This is reflected in the way the company is run.”
– Mohegan Sun employee, Fortune Magazine.
Workday
- Industry: Software
- Number of employees: 8,552
- Headquarters: Pleasanton, CA
Workday is a signatory for numerous diversity and inclusion commitments, including the White House Equal Pay Pledge, the Business Statement for Transgender Equality, and the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge. They host numerous ERGs and stand out in their industry as one of the most diverse companies, achieving 45% minority employees and 36% women executives.
Adobe
- Industry: IT, Internet, Software & Services
- Number of employees: 22,000
- Headquarters: San Jose, CA
Adobe is very transparent about its diversity metrics, regularly updating statistics around gender and diversity across technical and non-technical roles at all levels of the business. Adobe reported achieving global gender pay parity for Adobe employees as of October 2018, as well as parity among underrepresented minorities (URM) and non-URM employees in the U.S.
Like many other companies on this list, Adobe is engaged with a Supplier Diversity program to ensure that it supports businesses owned by underrepresented groups.
Ultimate Software
- Industry: IT
- Number of employees: 5,099
- Headquarters: Weston, FL
Ultimate Software is a very people-first organization, which allows them to be one of the more proactive companies that embrace diversity. Ultimate offers eight different company-wide ERGs and recently formed the Equity at Work Council, an interdisciplinary group working to understand and develop the science underpinning diversity, equity, and belonging (DEB).
A great benefit that Ultimate offered last year was matching donations to any employees’ personal donations, dollar-for-dollar with no cap, to any 501c3 non-profit addressing racial injustice. Ultimate’s workforce is 49% women and 46% minorities.
Henry Ford Health System
- Industry: Healthcare
- Number of employees: 30,000
- Headquarters: Detroit, MI
Henry Ford was named one of the top health and hospital companies for diversity by Diversity Inc in 2020. It offers ERGs for women, veterans, caregivers, individuals living with a disability, Hispanic/Latino, Middle Eastern, African American, Millennials, and LGBTQ employees. In addition, Henry Ford supports inclusion in the healthcare industry writ large through the Institute on Multicultural Health (IOMH), which is working to develop approaches to providing quality healthcare to underrepresented racial and ethnic populations that may be disproportionately affected by serious and chronic medical conditions.
“Our policy of inclusion reaches far beyond race and ethnicity to include gender, age, physical and mental abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, educational background, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, socioeconomic status, veteran and military status, geographical location, income, marital status, parental status and work experiences.”
– Henry Ford Health System
Proctor & Gamble
- Industry: Consumer Goods
- Number of employees: 97,000
- Headquarters: Cincinnati, OH
P&G is very transparent about its diversity and inclusion metrics, which were last updated in 2020. Its diversity dashboard shows how P&G has improved gender diversity, ethnic diversity, and the makeup of its board since 2015. Recently the brand announced a new global parental leave policy, offering at minimum eight weeks of fully-paid leave for biological parents, domestic partners, adoptive parents, and parents in same-sex couples, plus an additional six weeks of physical recovery leave for birth mothers.
[Read more: How To Measure Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion]
Visa
- Industry: Finance and Banking
- Number of employees: 19,500
- Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
Visa scores 100% on the Human Rights Campaign Equality Index & Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality and is also listed on the Anita Borg Institute Top Companies for Women Technologists ranking. There are multiple inclusive programs available to employees, including leadership development, more than 10 ERGs, and diversity hiring and advancement initiatives. Globally, Visa’s workforce is 41% female with 39% female leaders. Visa offers equal pay for equal work globally, as well as for underrepresented minorities and their white peers in the US.
Levi Strauss & Co
- Industry: Retail
- Number of employees: 13,800
- Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
Levi Strauss & Co is extremely transparent with its diversity metrics. It’s also one of the few companies to publicize that hiring managers go through unconscious bias awareness training. Through the Levi Strauss Foundation, the company is able to provide employees with up to $2,000 a year in matching funds for donations and volunteer time. The 10 ERGs influence everything from product and marketing decisions to employment policies.
“Our total U.S. workforce is much more ethnically diverse than the U.S. population as a whole – driven by the diversity of our retail and distribution center employees. However, we have the opportunity to diversify our corporate workforce, which is 55% white.”
– Levi Strauss & Co
[Read more: How To Avoid The 12 Kinds Of Hiring Bias In Your Recruitment Process]
The Hartford
- Industry: Financial Services
- Number of employees: 18,500
- Headquarters: Hartford, CT
The Hartford has ranked for 12 years on the Human Rights Campaign’s annual Corporate Equality Index and was named a World’s Most Ethical Company® by the Ethisphere Institute. The company supports nine different ERGs as well as “human achievement programs,” such as the Ability Equipped program that empowers those with disabilities to compete by providing adaptive sports equipment. The company’s inclusive culture embraces employees to speak their minds and provide input on the direction of the business.
Netflix
- Industry: Entertainment
- Number of employees: 8,600
- Headquarters: Los Gatos, CA
Netflix released its first diversity and inclusion report earlier this year. It found that women make up half of its workforce (47.1%), including at the leadership level: directors and above (47.8%), vice presidents (43.7%), and senior leadership (47.6%).
Netflix is also offering training to help recruiters improve diversity hiring: modules include “spotting bias in the interview process, sourcing candidates in non-traditional ways, and helping hiring managers identify the perspectives missing on their teams”. The company also has 15 ERGs serving Latinx, veteran, Black, and disability communities (see the full list here).
Salesforce
- Industry: IT
- Number of employees: 24,111
- Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
Salesforce is committed to creating a workforce that’s 50% employees from underrepresented groups, and as of 2020, they’ve achieved 47.4%. The company is also invested in growing diverse leaders with three key programs: the Equality Mentorship program, connecting employees of color with executive mentors; a minority professional development program that partners with the Executive Leadership Council; and Career Milestones, a new pilot program for minority career sponsorship and coaching. Salesforce aims to double the U.S. representation of Black leaders (VP+) and increase our representation of minority leaders by 50% by 2023.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
- Industry: Healthcare
- Number of employees: 3,819
- Headquarters: Boston, MA
Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA has historically focused on building an inclusive culture to become one of the best companies for diversity. Recently, the company hosted “Diversity Dialogues”, in which 400+ associates participated in 16 candid talks about diversity and inclusion. The event is held quarterly in addition to the annual Women@Blue conference that centers on the advancement, development, and wellbeing of women in the workplace. In addition to ERGs, Blue Cross Blue Shield also offers regular diversity and inclusion training.
Leidos
- Industry: Engineering
- Number of employees: 32,000
- Headquarters: Reston, VA
Leidos is taking a slightly different — and very effective — approach to diversity hiring. It focuses on “neurodiversity” in addition to traditional diversity and inclusion. Neurodiversity hiring brings in employees with special needs: “[A]lthough corporate programs have so far focused primarily on autistic people, it should be possible to extend them to people affected by dyspraxia (a neurologically based physical disorder), dyslexia, ADHD, social anxiety disorders, and other conditions,” reported Harvard Business Review.
“Many people with these disorders have higher-than-average abilities; research shows that some conditions, including autism and dyslexia, can bestow special skills in pattern recognition, memory, or mathematics.”
In addition to investing in neurodiversity initiatives, Leidos is consistently ranked as one of the top companies for hiring veterans and a great place to work for LGBTQ+ employees.
Mount Sinai Health Systems
- Industry: Healthcare
- Number of employees: 142,000
- Headquarters: New York, NY
Mount Sinai Health Systems refers to the hospital, medical school, and numerous affiliates. Seven MSHS-related hospitals have been recognized for their work in LGBTQ healthcare equality, and the network has earned numerous awards as being a great workplace for diversity. Last year, MSHS announced a new task force to address racism; the company offers ERGs in addition to “Site Diversity Councils”.
PricewaterhouseCoopers
- Industry: Professional services
- Number of employees: 43,792
- Headquarters: New York, NY
As you may expect, diversity at PwC is very data-driven. As co-founders of the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge, PwC has made a big effort to advance diversity and inclusion within the workplace. In the last three years, PwC has increased racially and ethnically diverse new hires by 8%. It offers inclusive benefits such as a stipend to pay back student loans and an emergency backup childcare reimbursement program.
“Our focus on achieving measurable outcomes in the area of diversity, inclusion and belonging internally and externally as one of the founders of CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion are admirable.”
– Employee feedback, Forbes
HP Inc
- Industry: IT
- Number of employees: 13,320
- Headquarters: Palo Alto, CA
HP has increased the number of women in leadership positions by 9% since 2015 and has also made a commitment to pay equality. The company has been recognized in the US as a Best Company by Working Mother Magazine for an incredible 27 years, an accolade that recently extends to HP’s operations in Mexico and India. They partner with a number of organizations working to advance minorities, such as the National Society of Black Engineers and the Hispanic IT Executive Council.
Accor
- Industry: Hospitality
- Number of US employees: 8,317
- Headquarters: National Harbor, MD
Accor is a part of the IMPACT 10x10x10 initiative of the HeForShe solidarity campaign backed by UN Women, the goal of which is to involve men in fostering gender equality across the hotel industry. Minorities make up an impressive 70% of Accor’s workforce, with 93% of front-line manager positions taken by women. Accor’s careers page also includes a search function designed for candidates with disabilities so that recruiters can provide a tailored application process for their specific needs.
“I am absolutely convinced that women should be free to have fulfilling careers and be given the same opportunities as men. As CEO of AccorHotels, I know that we have the resources and capacity to bring about real change. Our values, our Human Resources policy and the WAAG, our internal diversity network, speak for it. Employees, partners and guests, we must all stave off gender-related prejudices, offer a more gender equal remuneration policy, promote more women to managerial positions, ensure that men commit to this change and, through our endowment fund Solidarity Accor, encourage projects that help train and integrate young women in difficulty.”
– Sébastien Bazin, Chairman and CEO of AccorHotels
Hulu
- Industry: Entertainment
- Number of employees: 2,088
- Headquarters: Santa Monica, CA
96% of Hulu employees say that the company culture is very welcoming — and the TV streaming company is popular on the lists of best places to work for millennials, women, and parents. Here are a number of ERGs at Hulu and a ton of volunteer and community-focused events that the company culture rallies around.
“What makes Hulu a great place to work is the culture and the way you are greeted by everyone whether you know them or not. When you come to Hulu, you feel welcomed and like family. They care about you and want you to succeed and grow in the company.”
– Employee, Great Place to Work Review
Walt Disney
- Industry: Entertainment
- Number of employees: 223,000
- Headquarters: Burbank, CA
Walt Disney is a big employer of veterans: Disney’s Heroes Work Here initiative, the Walt Disney has hired more than 10,000 veterans since 2012. In addition, there 70Business ERGs hosted by Disney around the world. Disney employees are a diverse bunch — for the 14th year, Disney scored a perfect 100 on the 2020 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation that measures corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ workplace equality.
Deloitte
- Industry: Professional services
- Number of employees: 330,000
- Headquarters: New York, NY
Deloitte responded to the 2020 pandemic by providing virtual solutions to creating an inclusive work culture. “Our new Inclusion mobile app, launched in October 2020, provides professionals with a one-stop source for discovering events, joining virtual communities, exploring resources, and connecting with colleagues,” reports the consulting firm. The virtual platform is supplemented by Inclusion Councils and BRGs (business resource groups), including Black Employee Network, GLOBE & Allies (LGBTQIA+), Asian BRG, Hispanic Employee Network (HNET), Armed Forces BRG, Ability First, Deloitte Parents Network, and Women’s Network (WIN).
“We cannot be the business we aspire to be unless we set a new bar for diversity, equity, and inclusion. That means recognizing that progress doesn’t happen through happenstance or simply through good values. It takes intentionality—by each of one of us, every day.”
– Dan Helfrich, CEO of Deloitte’s Consulting Business
Johnson & Johnson
- Industry: Consumer goods
- Number of employees: 132,200
- Headquarters: New Brunswick, NJ
Johnson & Johnson has received dozens of mentions on lists of top companies that support diversity. In its 2019 diversity and inclusion survey, 91% of employees reported that they are treated with respect; 81% confirmed their team environment “has a climate in which diverse perspectives are valued.” Johnson & Johnson offers unconscious bias training and hosts ERGs all over the world which play a role in referring new candidates during the hiring process. In 2019, Johnson & Johnson’s Latin America operations became the first region to achieve gender parity across its global workforce.
Paypal
- Industry: IT, Internet, Software & Services
- Number of employees: 23,200
- Headquarters: San Jose, CA
Paypal understands the link between diversity and innovation and uses that connection to foster an inclusive culture. Its “One Team Behaviors” policy sets the tone for an open and transparent culture, in which employees are encouraged to question the status quo, ask questions, and treat one another with respect. In 2018, for the tenth consecutive year, PayPal earned a perfect rating of 100 percent from the HRC Corporate Equality Index.
KPMG
- Industry: Professional services
- Number of employees: 32,393
- Headquarters: New York, NY
KPMG reports that nearly 40% of employees are engaged with seven national diversity networks: Abilities in Motion, African-American, Asian Pacific Islander, Hispanic/Latino, KPMG’s Network of Women (KNOW), pride@kpmg (LGBT), and Veterans networks. These networks each have local chapters that act similar to ERGs and provide career development opportunities, networking, and more.
“Overall, the firm has demonstrated commitment to diversity & inclusion by supporting our BRGs and being intentional about providing leadership development opportunities to the underrepresented workforce.”
– KPMG Employee, Great Place to Work review
These companies that embrace diversity have made specific, measurable steps to change the way they hire, foster talent, promote leaders and elevate underrepresented populations in their workforce. It takes transparency, investment from leadership, and an investment in training and resources to being to make the change needed to bring equity in the workplace. But, organizations that promote diversity report that this effort pays off in the long-run.
To learn more, read our Ultimate Guide to Diversity Hiring.
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