- Several firms have rolled back DEI efforts amid pressure from conservative groups and the White House.
- Some CEOs have voiced their support or defended the diversity programs at their companies.
- Deutsche Bank’s CEO is the latest bank executive to defend DEI initiatives.
The list of CEOs who are publicly backing their companies’ DEI policies is growing.
Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing is the latest, joining JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon and Goldman Sachs’ David Solomon in publicly defending DEI programs amid wider external criticism of diversity initiatives from conservative activists and President Donald Trump’s new administration.
One of Trump’s first executive orders placed federal DEI staffers on administrative leave as work began to dismantle their departments.
The pullback on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the private sector began before Trump took office. A slew of companies — including Meta, Walmart, and McDonald’s — either reduced or ended their own DEI initiatives. Some had been targeted by conservative activist groups.
However, amid the tensions around DEI, some executives are taking a public stance in support of their firms’ policies.
