LCDA, KPMG Report: A Majority of Fortune 1000 Boardrooms Lack a Latino Perspective

In 2021, there were still no Latinos on the boards of more than two-thirds of Fortune 1000 companies.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- More than two-thirds of Fortune companies do not have a Latino director on their board, according to a new report, Latino Representation on Fortune 1000 Boards, 2022 edition, by the Latino Corporate Directors Association (LCDA) and KPMG, LLP.

While nearly 1 in 5 U.S. residents are Latino, in 2021, only 31% of Fortune 1000 companies had a Latino director on their board, up from 23% in 2019. Just 4% of Fortune 1000 boards had two Latino directors and a mere 1% had three or more.

"Many boardrooms are missing out on key market insight by not seeking Hispanic/Latino directors for their boards. At $2.7 trillion, the Latino GDP serves as an engine of economic growth. Companies would be wise to include a Latino perspective in their boardroom," stated Elizabeth Oliver-Farrow, LCDA Board Chair. "Following a decades-long impasse, LCDA has contributed to notable progress with the strongest number of Latinos appointments in the last three years. Yet still in 21st Century America, it is unacceptable that Hispanics/Latinos remain the least tapped and most underrepresented group in America's corporate boardrooms," continued Oliver-Farrow.

This annual report is part of an ongoing partnership between the LCDA and KPMG that measures Latino representation on Fortune 1000 boards by industry and by the states in which companies are headquartered. It also researched the gender, age, board, and committee service of Latino directors.

Latino Board Representation:

Approximately 5% of Fortune 1000 boards have two or more Latinos, an increase of 2 percentage points since 2019.

Findings by Gender:

• Approximately one quarter of all directors serving on public Fortune 1000 company boards are female. By comparison, 33% of the Latino directors serving on the boards of public Fortune 1000 companies are female. This represents a slight increase since 2020, when 30% of the Latino directors on public Fortune 1000 company boards were female.

Findings by Industry:

• The food, beverages, and tobacco; engineering and construction; and business services industries have the highest percentage of companies with at least one Latino director on their boards

Findings by State:

• Texas and California have nearly 40% of residents who are Latino; however, Latinos hold only 4% of board seats of companies headquartered there.
• In Florida where 26% of residents are Latino, Latinos hold 6% of public Fortune 1000 board seats.

This new report and our inaugural report show that there has been minimal change in the findings by industry and state, despite the Latino growth in these states and ongoing efforts on diversity and equity. 

"Boards today need diverse perspectives to drive rich boardroom conversations and decision-making," said Susan Angele, KPMG Board Leadership Center Senior Advisor and LCDEF board member and programs committee chair. "Latinos play a major role in the economy as employees, consumers, and business owners. Latino consumers contribute $2.7 trillion to the U.S. GDP, yet only a third of Fortune 1000 companies include a Latino perspective in the boardroom."

"As part of the solution, LCDA is changing the narrative and leading with talent. With over 500+ experienced and board-ready members, plus, access to thousands more, there is ample talent primed for board leadership," said Esther Aguilera, LCDA President and CEO.

LCDA provides an online tool, LatinoBoardTracker.org, that tracks Latino representation on Fortune 1000 boards. The tool raises awareness of the underrepresentation of Latinos on the boards of America's largest companies.

LCDA brings together accomplished and respected Hispanics/Latinos in corporate leadership and corporate governance committed to paying it forward. Our mission is to develop, support, and increase the number of US Hispanics/Latinos on corporate boards. LCDA's strategy to accelerate Hispanic/Latino placements on corporate boards focuses on three areas: grow demand, grow supply, and raise awareness. LCDA serves as an advocate and resource to corporate boards, search firms, private equity, and institutional investors interested in gaining access to exceptional Hispanic/Latino board talent. Together with our foundation (LCDEF), our program areas also focus on growing the supply of high-caliber boardroom candidates and providing quality corporate governance programming for experienced and aspiring directors. For more information about LCDA visit www.latinocorporatedirectors.org.

The KPMG Board Leadership Center (BLC) champions outstanding corporate governance to drive long-term value and enhance stakeholder confidence. Through an array of insights, perspectives, and programs, the BLC—which includes the KPMG Audit Committee Institute and close collaboration with other leading director organizations—promotes continuous education and improvement of public and private company governance. BLC engages with directors and business leaders on the critical issues driving board agendas—from strategy, risk, talent, and ESG to data governance, audit quality, proxy trends, and more. Learn more at kpmg.com/us/blc.

Annalisa Barrett is a senior advisor with the KPMG Board Leadership Center, where she leads research projects and develops thought leadership, in addition to providing insights to corporate boards on emerging trends in corporate governance.

Katie Keally is a manager of content creation with the KPMG Board Leadership Center.

Ozzie Gromada Meza is the Vice President, Member and Talent Services of the Latino Corporate Directors Association leading the organization's talent intelligence strategy and tools including the Latino Board Tracker, which monitors Latino board movement in the Fortune 1000.

Contact: Monique Navarro, LCDA Director of Communications, (915)790-7788

SOURCE LATINO CORPORATE DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION