In this era of #MeToo, harassment claims, and discrimination allegations, large companies are officially under the microscope when it comes to the diversity of their workforce. Just recently, Forbes and the data analysis organization Statista teamed up to find out which of America’s companies could be considered the most diverse employers. To accomplish this, more than 60,000 U.S.-based employees were surveyed, and the boards and top executive teams of various companies were examined. The results are quite surprising. From universities, to insurance companies, to utilities providers, these are the 30 best employers in America for diversity.
1. SAP
Newtown Square, Pennsylvania
Short for “Systeme, Anwendungen und Produkte in der Datenverabeitung,” which translates to “Systems, Applications, and Products in Data Processing.” SAP is a German software corporation which produces software to manage business operations and customer relations. Though the company’s global headquarters are located in Germany, it operates 180 regional offices worldwide. One of these is located in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. In line with SAP’s record as an employer of diversity, the company has launched an initiative to hire employees with Autism Spectrum Disorders. SAP has vowed that by 2020, 1% of its workforce will be made up of people with autism.
2. Henry Ford Health System
Detroit, Michigan
Based in Metro Detroit, Henry Ford Health System is a comprehensive non-profit health care organization which is run by a 15-member board of trustees. Employing approximately 31,600 people, the health system operates six hospitals throughout the greater Detroit area, including the Level I trauma center that is Henry Ford Hospital. Also included in Henry Ford Health System are seven specialized medical facilities, nine emergency departments, and 40 general medical centers.
3. Procter & Gamble
Cincinnati, Ohio
Often shortened to just P&G, The Procter & Gamble Company is a multinational consumer goods corporation specializing in personal care and hygiene products. It owns myriad brands which are household names, including, among others Bounty, Crest, Dawn, Downy, Febreze, Gain, and Tide. Though headquartered in Cincinnati, P&G has manufacturing operations in nearly 30 countries. The company employees about 100,000 people.
4. The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
Columbus, Ohio
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center — previously known as The Ohio State Medical Center — is an academic medical center which sees more than 1.81 million outpatient visits each year. The center employs more than 23,000 physicians, residents, and nurses. They work in the center’s two full-service teaching hospitals, one additional hospital, a psychiatric hospital, and other centers dedicated to cardiovascular diseases and the brain and spine. U.S. News & World Report has included the Wexner Medical Center on its rankings of the “Best Hospitals” for a whopping 26 years in a row.
5. Visa, Inc.
Foster City, California
Visa is easily one of the most widely recognized brands in America, if not the world. Employing about 17,000 people worldwide and headquartered near San Francisco, Visa facilitates the transfers of electronic funds via credit cards, debit cards, and gift cards. According to the Nilson Report, a publication which routinely tracks the credit card industry, Visa processes more than 100 billion transactions each year. A highly respected company, Visa has been named by Forbes as one of the Top Regarded Companies 2019 (#1), the World’s Most Valuable Brands 2019 (#25), and America’s Best Employers 2019 (#138).
6. Ultimate Software
Weston, Florida
With a motto like “People First,” maybe it’s no wonder that Ultimate Software ranks as America’s 6th best company for diversity. Headquartered in Florida, the technology company is best known for developing and selling UltiPro, a cloud-based human capital management software for businesses. Ultimate Software currently employs about 5,100 people in offices around the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Singapore. It reports approximately 4,100 customers in 160 countries.
7. Levi Strauss & Co.
San Francisco, California
There are few things as American as a pair of Levi’s denim jeans. The company has operated in San Francisco since its founding by Levi Strauss in 1853. Levi Strauss & Co. operates 2,800 stores worldwide, and also owns the popular brands Dockers and Denizen. As of 2018, Levi Strauss employs 15,100 workers around the globe.
8. Duke University
Durham, North Carolina
Duke University is a private research university founded by Methodists and Quakers in 1838. The university has always enjoyed a reputation of open-mindedness and inclusivity, and its current 45,000 employees (3,700 academic staff, plus 41,200 campus and health system employees) assert it is one of the country’s best employers for diversity. The university is often included on national rankings of the best universities in the nation and world. To date, 15 Nobel laureates and three Turing Award winners have been connected to Duke in some way. The university also ranks as one of the largest producers of Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater, and Udall Scholars.
9. JLL
Chicago, Illinois
Known officially as Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated, JLL is a commercial real estate services firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. As the second largest company of its kind in the world, JLL employs 91,000 people in 80 countries. The company’s services include sales and leasing, project development, property management, and project management.
10. Tufts Health Plan
Watertown, Massachusetts
With only 2,400 employees, Tufts Health Plan is a smaller organization than most others on our list. Still, the Massachusetts-based health insurance company is reported to be the 10th best employer in the United States for diversity. Officially associated with Tufts Associated Health Plans, Inc., Tufts Health Plan provides innovative and high-quality health care coverage to more than 1 million members. Though it has yet to happen, in August 2019 the boards of Tufts Health Plan and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care announced plans to merge their organizations into a new, yet-to-be-named company.
11. The Hartford
Hartford, Connecticut
Appropriately located in Hartford, Connecticut, The Hartford is a financial services group which focuses on investments and insurance. The company is the country’s 12th largest property and casualty company, and sells its products through a network of brokers and agents. About 16,500 people are employed by The Hartford, which also ranks #55 on Forbes’s list of the Best Employers for New Grads 2019.
12. Netflix
Los Gatos, California
A household name at this point, Netflix is a media-services provider and production company based in the Bay Area. More than 148 million households worldwide — including 60 million U.S. households — subscribe to Netflix to access streaming shows and movies. In recent years, Netflix has expanded into a film production company and is now producing “Netflix Originals.” Netflix has become a regular at the most prestigious awards shows, often beating out other successful networks like HBO and Showtime. In addition to its Los Gatos headquarters, Netflix operates offices in Brazil, India, Japan, the Netherlands, and South Korea.
13. Kent State University
Kent, Ohio
Though it dropped from its #4 spot in the 2019 rankings, Kent State University remains one of the best companies in the United States for diversity. The Ohio-based public research university serves nearly 40,000 students on seven regional campuses (29,000 of those students study at the man campus in the city of Kent). The university employs nearly 10,000 academic and administrative staff. Impressively, Kent State University has also been included on Forbes’s rankings of the Best Employers for Women 2019 (#46), America’s Best Employers by State 2019, and America’s Best Midsize Employers 2017 (#170).
14. Salesforce.com
San Francisco, California
Salesforce is the 14th best employer in America for diversity — up two spots since the 2019 rankings. The company has also been ranked by Fortune as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2018. Salesforce is a cloud-based software company, and is best known for its customer-relationship management service. Other services offered include:
- work.com
- Lightning Platform
- AppExchange
- myTrailhead, among others
The company currently employs about 35,000 people.
15. California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, California
California Institute of Technology, or “Caltech,” is a selective private research university located in Pasadena, California. It’s often ranked as one of the top 10 universities in the world in recognition of its strength in engineering and the natural sciences. Caltech employs about 300 academic staff who teach across six divisions, and who manage approximately $330 million in sponsored research at any given time.
16. L’Oréal
New York, New York
Though officially headquartered in France, L’Oréal’s New York office has been recognized as one of 2020’s best American employers for diversity. The personal care organization is the world’s largest cosmetics company. It has developed myriad hair color, skin care, make-up, sun protection, hair care, anti-aging, and perfume products under its L’Oréal name. Its subsidiaries incude Garnier, Lancôme, Maybelline, NYX Cosmetics, and Matrix Essentials. L’Oréal employs near 90,000 people worldwide.
17. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
Boston, Massachusetts
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) is a private health insurance company under the umbrella of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Located in an historic building on Federal Street in Boston, BCBSMA employs about 3,600 workers.
18. University of California, Irvine
Irvine, California
UC Irvine is one of 10 branches of the University of California system, but it is the only one to make our list of America’s best companies for diversity. Considered to be a “Public Ivy,” UC Irvine employs more than 11,000 academic and administrative staff on its 1,500-acre suburban campus. In addition to this list, UC Irvine has also been ranked by Forbes as one of California’s best employers (2019), the 40th best employer in America (2019), and the 14th best midsize employer in America (2018).
19. Mount Sinai Health System
New York, New York
Mount Sinai Health System retains its #19 spot on the list of the best U.S. employers for diversity. The New York City-based hospital network was founded in 2013 — the result of a merger between Mount Sinai Medical Center and Continuum Health Partners. The health system employs about 42,000 people, including around 6,600 primary and specialty care physicians. It is estimated that in any given year, Mount Sinai Health System’s seven hospitals and 13 ambulatory surgical centers admit nearly 137,000 people as inpatients, treat 501,000 Emergency Department visitors, and deliver nearly 15,000 babies.
20. Comcast Corporation
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Streaming services like Netflix and Hulu may be becoming more popular, but the Comcast Corporation remains the second-largest broadcasting and cable television company in the world. It is also the biggest home internet service provider in the country, and the third largest home telephone service provider. Based in Philadelphia, Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal. They serve millions of residential and commercial companies in 40 states and the District of Columbia.
21. UCLA Health
Los Angeles, California
UCLA Health consists of multiple hospitals and care centers throughout the Los Angeles area. Affiliated with University of California, Los Angeles, these hospitals and care centers are considered academic medical centers. In addition to covering approximately two million lives, UCLA Health also runs Operation Mend, a program through which military veterans wounded in Afghanistan and Iraq may receive top-level care.
22. Penn Medicine
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Penn Medicine is comprised of the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pennsylvania Health System. The system is a diverse clinical and research entity. It consists of six hospitals, 10 multi-specialty centers, and various doctors’ offices and clinical sites. Interestingly one of Penn Medicine’s hospitals, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, was the first university-owned teaching hospital in the United States.
23. OhioHealth
Columbus, Ohio
OhioHealth is a not-for-profit collection of hospitals and other healthcare providers located in an around Columbus, Ohio. The system includes 12 hospitals (including Level I and Level II trauma centers), along with more than 200 other ambulatory sites. It also provides:
- hospice
- home health
- medical equipment services
Nearly 30,000 physicians and staff members are employed by OhioHealth.
24. New York Life
New York, New York
More than 11,000 employees and 12,000 agents are employed by New York Life, the 24th best employer in the United States for diversity. The company is the third largest life insurance company in the country. It offers a variety of products besides life insurance, including:
- asset management
- annuities
- long-term care
New York Life currently ranks 69th on the Fortune 500 list of the largest American corporations by total revenue.
25. Cisco Systems
San Jose, California
Cisco Systems is one of the best known technology conglomerates in the Silicon Valley, and one of the country’s most diverse employers. The multinational company develops, manufactures, and sells:
- various software
- networking hardware,
- telecommunications equipment
- high-technology services
Its many subsidiaries include OpenDNS, Jabber, and Webex. Cisco currently employs approximately 73,700 professionals.
26. The Walt Disney Co.
Burbank, California
As most people know, The Walt Disney Co. is a massively successful family entertainment and media conglomerate headquartered in Southern California. Four business segments make up the company:
- parks and resorts
- media networks
- studio entertainment
- consumer products and interactive media
Collectively, these four segments own and operate theme parks and resorts worldwide, produce live-action and animated film and television, publish games and books, and much more. More than 200,000 people are employed by The Walt Disney Co. worldwide.
27. Deloitte
New York, New York
Officially known as Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, Deloitte is considered one of the world’s “Big Four” accounting organizations. Headquartered in London, Deloitte employs approximately 312,000 people globally, including in its New York City office. Services provided include:
- audit
- tax
- consulting
- financial advising
- enterprise risk.
28. Johnson & Johnson
New Brunswick, New Jersey
Most definitely a household name, Johnson & Johnson is a multinational corporation known for its many medical devices, and pharmaceutical and consumer packaged products. More than 250 subsidiary companies fall under the Johnson & Johnson umbrella. Some of the company’s popular products include:
- Band-Aid
- Tylenol
- Johnson’s Baby
- Neutrogena
Ranked #37 on the Fortune 500 list of the largest companies, Johnson & Johnson is one of the most valuable companies in the world.
29. Ballad Health
Johnson City, Tennessee
Another healthcare system to be ranked among the best employers in America for diversity is Ballad Health. Based in Johnson City, Tennessee, Ballad Health serves 29 counties in northeast Tennessee, southwest Virginia, northwest North Carolina, and southeast Kentucky.
30. Accenture
Chicago, Illinois
Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Accenture is a multinational professional services company that provides a variety of services relating to:
- strategy
- consulting
- digital
- technology
- operations
The company employs nearly 500,000 people worldwide. It serves clients in 200 cities in 120 countries.
