How to cut through the cacophony over DEI

What, if anything,deispdei dei should firms do to improve the diversity of their workforce? After the murder of George Floyd in 2020, many bosses felt compelled to act. Partly out of fear of being called out for prejudice, corporate America rushed to embrace () schemes. By 2022 three-quarters of the & 500 had a chief diversity officer; more than two-fifths of listed firms set targets to increase the racial diversity of their workforce. Now many think the pendulum has swung too far.The resignation of Claudine Gay, a black woman, as president of Harvard University has ignited a broader debate about merit and identity. Bill Ackman and Elon Musk, two billionaires, have excoriated for itself being discriminatory. After the Supreme Court’s landmark decision to end affirmative action in university admissions last summer, many activists and politicians increasingly have corporate schemes in their sights.