The Role of Data and Artificial Intelligence in Driving Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The year 2020 changed the world landscape in ways more than ever before. One of the differences that came about was the increased push to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at the workplace and in society at large. Data and artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to identify equality gaps and bring them to the forefront. According to U.S. census data, 1 in 2020, number of Caucasians in the working population grew steadily at every level of the corporate ladder, accounting for 85% of executives. This shows striking racial inequality at the executive level, where African Americans constitute only 2% of senior managers, while they make up 13.4% of the U.S. population. Similarly, only 3% of executives are Latin Americans, who constitute 18.5% of the population. These numbers show that the workforce inequality delta is deeply rooted and will require conscious efforts to correct. Another notable statistic is that African Americans have a median net worth that is 1/10th that of Caucasians.