With numerous studies reporting that employee diversity encourages creativity and superior performance, perceptive employers are embracing diversity as a means of maximizing the effectiveness of their most important resource: their personnel. “The strength of a company ’s commitment to workplace diversity is an important factor that minority students consider when selecting their first employers,” said Claudia Tattanelli, CEO of Universum Communications, an international research firm.

An international partnership

THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine and Universum Communications have formed partnership to announce the Top 50 Diversity Employers for 2002 and publish the results of this year ’s edition of The Universum Diversity Survey in this issue of the magazine. The survey identified the top companies minority students would like to work for, and will serve as an important guide for students use in identifying companies with which to interview,” said Preston J. Edwards, Sr., CEO and Publisher of THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine.

The Top 50 Diversity Employers list drawn from The Universum Diversity Survey, which polled over 3,500 minority undergraduate and MBA students this year at 53 universities with large enrollments of African, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American students. Among many other work-related questions, students were asked which companies they would most like to work for. Their answers form the basis for this list, and inspired this issue ’s entire Top Diversity Employers feature. 

Timely information

The information gleaned from the survey is especially important now, as the economy is struggling, because employers with a diverse workforce have a competitive edge that may make a critical difference as they strategically position themselves for the economic recovery and beyond.

The 2002 recruitment year is proving to be a tough one for companies and students alike. According to Universum, the norms for recruitment and hiring established during the economic boom have fallen along the wayside as companies struggle to adjust their recruitment goals and communications strategies to the fluctuating economy. Students are carefully monitoring the actions that companies take to cope with their reduced recruitment needs, and are sharing their observations with their classmates.

Determining the degree of diversity

The strength of a company ’s commitment to workplace diversity is an important criterion for minority students in selecting their future employers. Companies that are decisive in taking steps to understand the employment priorities of minority students and to prioritize diversity in the action plans for their organizations have the opportunity to showcase themselves as employers of choice. In order to help companies target graduates from minority racial and ethnic groups, Universum ’survey asks these very students which factors they consider when determining the degree of diversity within a company. The company ’record of success in recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce is a clear indicator of minority-friendliness, respondents feel.

We trust you will find the Top 50 Diversity Employers 2002 feature to be useful to you as you soon embark on the job-search process.

Robert G. Miller is the vice-president and editor of THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine