Tech

Google Announces Efforts To Boost Number Of Black Executives

The company plans to focus on hiring, retention and promotion for underrepresented groups at all levels.

Google Announces Efforts To Boost Number Of Black Executives
Jeff Chiu / AP
SMS

Google announced Wednesday a plan to address racial equity in and outside of the company, including boosting the number of black executives.

CEO Sundar Pichai wrote in a blog post: "Strengthening our commitment to racial equity and inclusion will help Google build more helpful products for our users and the world."

Currently, about 96% of Google's senior leadership in the U.S. is White or Asian while 73% are men. Pichai said the company aims to have 30% more leaders from underrepresented groups in the next five years.

In a country where about 13 percent of the population is African American, less than 4% of Google's overall workforce is Black. Pichai says the company is going to focus on hiring, retention and promotion for underrepresented groups at all levels.

Other internal efforts include establishing anti-racism educational programs and working with its benefits provider to increase its network of Black counselors.

Outside the office, it plans to put $175 million dollars into Black-owned businesses. Most of that money will go toward funding startups or to organizations that support black entrepreneurs.