A Sector Breakdown of Board Diversity at S&P 500 Companies — ESG Insight
Key Takeaways Among S&P 500 companies that fully disclosed the race & ethnicity breakdown of their boards, the average number of non-white board members rose to 2.4 in 2022 from 2.2 in 2021. That number ranged from 3.2 in the financial sector to 1.9 in the renewable-energy sector.Companies in the technology and communications sector showed the largest increase in the number of non-white directors.
The sector had the largest number of companies that fully disclose the race and ethnicity makeup of their boards. It also accounted for close to a third of all the firms that disclose the LGBTQ status of board members.The transportation sector showed the largest increase in chair seats occupied by women, while the services sector had the highest average LGBTQ representation at the board level.
Tech Increases Board Diversity the Most The surge in the overall number of S&P 500 companies reporting race and ethnicity data can obscure emerging trends at the sector level, according to data compiled by the WSJ Pro Research team. This analysis is part of a series of WSJ Pro Research reports derived from S&P 500 companies’ proxy statements as well as sustainability, diversity & inclusion, and corporate social responsibility reports.
Companies are categorized into one of 11 sectors, based on the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board framework. Data showed that while the average number of non-white directors on S&P 500 boards rose to 2.4 in 2022 from 2.2 in 2021, that number ranged between a high of 3.2 for the financial sector and a low of 1.9 for the renewable-resources and alternative-energy sector.
The average S&P 500 board has 11 directors. The technology and communications sector incorporated the most new ethnically diverse
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