USCC & NACD Board Diversity Accelerator Initiative

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce (the U.S. Chamber) and the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) are partnering to accelerate diversity in America’s corporate boardrooms and to create increased opportunities for Black business executives and leaders to positively contribute to the economy through board service.

For decades, boards and governance advocates have embraced the goal of diversity but have pointed to a lack of a “pipeline” of Black talent for the boardroom. Some have argued that boards have simply failed to do the necessary work to identify talent from non-traditional sources.

In either event, the failure by boards to make meaningful progress to diversify is evident. Recent data suggests that a mere 15% of new board members in the Russell 3000 in 2019 were minorities and the overall Black representation in the board room remains distressingly low. More recently, institutional investors and other stakeholders have pointed to growing research demonstrating the link between diversity and financial performance, innovation, productivity, and market share.

The U.S. Chamber and NACD commit to addressing the lack of board diversity by identifying, preparing, and connecting 250 Black business executives to public and private board opportunities by the end of 2022.

Learn more about this partnership

Building on the U.S. Chamber’s Equality of Opportunity initiative and the NACD Accelerateprogram, which seeks to build a diverse next-generation of directors, this work aspires to have real, measurable impact.

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To contribute to the diversity of the next generation of directors, please complete the form below.