Study shows UK firms have poor representation of ethnic talents on their boards!

Study shows UK firms have poor representation of ethnic talents on their boards!

A recent study of the top 100 UK firms conducted by the ethnic marketing forum think ethnic, revealed some shocking stats which shows that despite the fact that more than 50% of the growth in the population in the UK was attributed to multicultural communities (which accounts to some 20% of the population), less than 5% of UK companies have directors on the boards from an ethnic backgrounds.

If you consider that London and other major cities in the UK have an ethnic majority you can see the inequality and lack of representation by ethnic talent.

Think Ethnic director Saad Saraf, stated that “UK PLC is not changing as fast in line with the changes that are taking place on the ground and UK firms are increasingly alienating their staff and missing out on an untapped ethnic customer with disposable income and money to spend”. And this is despite the fact that Universities are reporting that more than 35% of graduates and high achievers tend to be of multicultural origins. The highest being Asians, Chinese, Arabs followed by West Africans.

Studies conducted by Think Ethnic in the past showed that having a diverse staff in companies can help those companies reach new customers both in the UK and in growing emerging markets.

Saad Saraf added that while the government keeps telling companies to target and win business in emerging economies, we see UK companies failing to address the basic issues of representation, which is not acceptable, and it brings back to the table the issue of government legislations and quotas as a solution to this endemic saga.

Staff from of a multicultural origin is poorly represented in major decision-making positions in companies. It has been proven that diversity and gender equality is an economic growth factor. Enhancing ethnic staff’s participation in boardrooms can make companies more profitable and give them the edge over the competition.

Even at the EU level most of the governors of the national central banks across the EU; the ECB, EIB and the EIF had no governor from a multicultural origin.

Whether gender quotas are the best solution to solve the issue of the lack of race & gender equality in the boardroom remains an open question. However, it would seem that implementing a quota solution is the most effective method for Boards to open their doors to gender and ethnic diversity at a reasonable pace due to the fact that although “most executives recognize the positive impact of staff diversity on company performance…this belief does not translate into action”.

 

The study was done with 100 UK companies and covered the following industries: Airlines, Cars, Technology, Pharmaceuticals, Banks, Supermarkets, Consultancies, Ad agencies, Telecom, Broadcast, Government, Multinational)

Saad Saraf

www.thinkethnic.com

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