> In my opinion, it would be beneficial if DEI initiatives were confidential and kept "hush hush" within a company.
The problem is incentives and selection bias.
Let's imagine a company that has a pretty obvious diversity problem when anyone happens to look around the room. What kind of person is likely to either be assigned "fix the diversity problem" or take on the job on their own? Probably they're someone high up the corporate ladder who has learned how to play the game.
That kind of person already knows that being "hush hush" about anything doesn't get them the next promotion, the big bonus. It doesn't achieve their personal goals. That's not how they got here.
And if this person is someone who meets the 'diversity' label (because who else would they assign it to?) in a company that has a clear diversity problem that they don't seem to understand (usually caused by implicit bais the leadership have and will never acknowledge exist), then this person has already learned that being quietly successful gets them no where. The only way to succeed is to do so loudly, publicly, and undeniably.
The goal isn't to increase diversity. It's to get the person in charge of increasing diversity a bigger paycheck.
The problem is incentives and selection bias.
Let's imagine a company that has a pretty obvious diversity problem when anyone happens to look around the room. What kind of person is likely to either be assigned "fix the diversity problem" or take on the job on their own? Probably they're someone high up the corporate ladder who has learned how to play the game.
That kind of person already knows that being "hush hush" about anything doesn't get them the next promotion, the big bonus. It doesn't achieve their personal goals. That's not how they got here.
And if this person is someone who meets the 'diversity' label (because who else would they assign it to?) in a company that has a clear diversity problem that they don't seem to understand (usually caused by implicit bais the leadership have and will never acknowledge exist), then this person has already learned that being quietly successful gets them no where. The only way to succeed is to do so loudly, publicly, and undeniably.
The goal isn't to increase diversity. It's to get the person in charge of increasing diversity a bigger paycheck.