Biz Journals: Businesses take stock of diversity efforts

3M, U.S. Bank make progress in diversity efforts, reports Center for Economic Inclusion - Alyxandra Sego - Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, September 13, 2023

“While pressures to abandon racial equity and inclusion efforts are loud and sometimes vicious, the case for accelerating efforts is even more compelling when considering the opportunity that inclusion presents businesses and our broader economy.”

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) and U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) are among Minnesota companies making progress in diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, according to this year’s racial-equity report from the Center for Economic Inclusion (Center).

The "2023 Racial Equity Dividends Index Report- Private Sector" is the second annual report from the St. Paul-based racial economics organization. Last year, 40 companies with large footprints in Minnesota participated in the racial-equity survey. For this year, 22 companies participated, making the total of unique companies participating for both years at 50, the Center reports.

The index was created as a tool to help businesses identify and monitor their actions for anti-racism, Tawanna Black, the Center’s founder and CEO wrote in the report’s opening statement. It also serves as a barometer for consumers, workers, shareholders and investors, she continued.

The index currently measures 43 racial-equity standards across seven equally-weighted categories (leadership; hiring; culture, retention and advancement; procurement; products and services; philanthropy and investment; and public policy). Some categories, if they were not applicable to a certain company, were excluded from that company’s total score. For example, if a company didn’t participate in lobbying, public policy may not be measured against their score.

According to the report, the average score for this year’s participants was 44 out of 100.

Both 3M and U.S. Bancorp met racial-equity standards within four of the seven categories, the highest in this index. Maplewood-based 3M scored at highly in initiatives related to leadership, hiring, procurement, as well as philanthropy and investment. Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank, meanwhile, scored highly in leadership, hiring, products and services, as well as philanthropy and investment. Both organizations last year met the report’s standards for the category measuring culture, retention and advancement, but did not do so in this year’s report. 

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