Ascend Board Advancement Initiative
The goal of the Board Advancement Initiative is to expand representation and the number of AAPI executives serving on Fortune 1000 boards.
Launched on June 10, 2021, this Initiative, together with other actions to promote board gender and ethnic diversity, will increase the effectiveness and performance of corporate boards and better equip companies to meet the many global challenges and opportunities ahead.
SEC approves Nasdaq’s plan to require board diversity
Ascend statement on SEC approval on Nasdaq board diversity rules
Our Commitment
Ascend Pinnacle will lead this effort and work with other AAPI and partner organizations on:
Recruitment
We identify talented and experienced individual candidates for open board positions.
Development
We’re expanding our programs to develop candidates at the director level for future board positions.
Placement
We’ve developed robust professional networks to match participating companies with AAPI executive and director candidates.
Diversity Tied to Performance
It is well established that the more diverse a company’s executive and board leadership, the better the company performs and adapts to new business and social dynamics.
Studies have shown that companies with more diverse leadership and boards have greater shareholder returns.
Source: “Diversity Matters,” McKinsey & Company, 2015
Equity in Representation
AAPIs are and have historically been severely under-represented at the highest levels of corporate America, including on boards, and stigmatized and unrecognized due to prejudice, bias and misconceptions. AAPIs have earned a seat at the table and their talents could help guide their companies in a complex global economy.
4.4 %
In 2020, a total of just 4.4% of directors of Fortune 1000 companies were AAPI (there were more director seats but many directors served on multiple boards).
71.6 %
Despite the importance that Asian Americans play in the U.S. economy, 71.6% of the Fortune 1000 companies do not have the benefit of an Asian perspective in the boardroom.
Source: Diversity and Inclusion reports from Facebook, Cisco, Intel, Microsoft, and Google in 2020
Greater Visibility
Having AAPIs in positions of leadership will help give voice and visibility to the AAPI community to break the “perpetual foreigner” stigma, which has contributed to the increase in AAPI hate actions and crimes.
12 %
Asian Americans are 12% of the professional workforce.
Source: “Asian Americans Are the Leaset Likely Group in the U.S. to Be Promoted to Management,” Harvard Business Review, 2018
30 %
Despite the importance that Asian Americans play in the U.S. economy, 71.6% of the Fortune 1000 companies do not have the benefit of an Asian perspective in the boardroom.
Source: Diversity and Inclusion reports from Facebook, Cisco, Intel, Microsoft, and Google in 2020
Recent Push for Board Racial Diversity
On September 30, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 979 into law, which requires that California-based public companies diversify their boards by December 31, 2022.
Institutional investors are pushing for increased board racial diversity. One example is the Diversity Disclosure Initiative announced on October 28, 2020.
On December 1, 2020, Nasdaq put forth a proposal for consideration by the SEC to adopt new listing rules requiring disclosure of diversity statistics for all companies listed on Nasdaq and, if a company does not meet certain diversity criteria, to explain why.
AAPIs: The Fastest Growing Racial Group
90%
Population Growth since 2000.
Source: “Engaging Asian American consumers at the dawn of a new decade,” Nielsen, 2020
35.8 Million
Asian American Population by 2060.
Source: "Asian Americans are the fastest-growing racial or ethnic group in the U.S." Pew Research Center, 2021
Economic Impact
$1.3 Trillion
Buying Power2022 Projection(2019 Projection: $1 Trillion)
Source: “Engaging Asian American consumers at the dawn of a new decade,” Nielsen, 2020
Invisibility of AAPIs and the Model Minority Myth
During this past year, AAPIs have been the target of increased hate actions and crimes, which many attribute, in part, to the "invisibility" of AAPIs in American society and the perpetuation of the Model Minority Myth. Because of these unfortunate events, there is growing awareness of and conversations about the societal and workplace challenges that AAPIs face in America and the lack of AAPI representation in leadership roles.
Source: “Model Minority Myth & the Double Edged Sword,” Ascend, 2021
AAPIs Experience
90%
of Black Americans say they are discriminated against in the U.S.
80%
of Asian Americans say they are discriminated against in the U.S.
Source: "STAATUS Index Report 2021," LAAUNCH, 2021
