Experiences of Chief Diversity Officers of Color Leading Diversity Management in Corporate America
Open Access DepositedConverging Interests, Diverging Realities
How do racialized organizational structures impact the ability of CDOs of color to fulfill their role, if at all? How do CDOs describe their personal and professional interests in relation to the interests of their company? How do CDOs of color describe the experience of working in an organization when their personal and professional interests diverge from those of their company? Through two interviews with thirteen participants, this study gave voice to DEI leaders working in various industries across corporate America. The themes of this study highlighted participants' journeys to becoming a CDO, the context in which they perform their work, the role and responsibilities of the CDO, and the unique challenges they face in navigating identity in the workplace. The findings emphasize the distinction between corporate DEI and social justice, highlight the experiences of women of color CDOs, discuss the role of CDOs in influencing organizational leaders, and acknowledge the exploitation of the unpaid labor of marginalized employees. The findings affirm that organizations, particularly in corporate America, are not race-neutral, as all four tenets of ROT were found present in the study. The findings suggest that some CDOs of color temper or compromise their personal values and commitments to DEI when these are misaligned with the organization’s priorities, often to safeguard their positions, particularly during periods of market instability. Further, CDOs of color navigate the weight of symbolic inclusion and structural marginalization, work at the intersection of institutional expectation and community accountability, and advocate for DEI within systems not designed to deliver it. Several recommendations for future research and practice are offered.
The purpose of this basic interpretive study was to understand the experiences of chief diversity officers of color leading diversity management at for-profit organizations based in the United States. Grounded in Victor Ray’s (2019) Racialized Organizations Theory (ROT) and Derrick Bell’s (1980) Interest Convergence Theory, this research was guided by the following question
How do CDOs of color describe their experience leading diversity management in corporate America? In exploring their experiences, the study asks
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