Last Updated:
10/25/20 3:56 PM
overall rating:
keep going
American Express
Internal Representation & Support
62%
Public Commitment
59%
External Communication
57%
To evaluate this pillar, we take into consideration a range of factors, including but not limited to:
- Employee representation
- Diversity, equity, & inclusion (DEI)
We weigh a company’s degree of public commitment primarily on their monetary contributions to DEI matters or organizations fighting racial injustice.
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Forms of monetary support we look for:
One-off donations
Recurring donations
Grant initiatives
Employee donation matching
Highlights
American Express periodically uses their platform to highlight small Black- and BIPOC-owned businesses and has increased the Black representation on their social media platforms since June.
Lowlights
American Express' donations equate to only 0.008% of their annual revenue. While their social media platforms periodically introduce Black-owned businesses, they do not share any genuinely educational resources or emphasize enough the importance of shopping Black-owned.
We scour the company’s website and official social media channels to determine what message they are sending around racial injustice, how they are communicating it, and whether their communications are perceived as genuine or performative.
Public statement: We verify that companies have made a formal statement regarding racial injustice.
Social media: We consider how a company uses their platform(s) beyond performative allyship.
Representation: For companies that have the opportunity to showcase diversity in their feed, we consider whether they have adequate Black representation and BIPOC representation across their models.
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Deep Dive
I. Internal Representation & Support:
Board of Directors:
> 15% Black, 21% - 25% BIPOC, 31% - 35% Women
Executive Leadership:
10% - 11% Black, 21% - 25% BIPOC, 36% - 40% Women
26% - 30% BIPOC,
Workforce:
An appointed DEI senior leader and/or a dedicated DEI organization, A Black employee resource group
DEI Support:
II. Public Commitment
American Express has pledged a donation of 0.001% - 0.009% of annual revenue towards racial injustice, specifically for Black lives. Additionally, American Express has engaged in actions that advance racial justice and/or uplift BIPOC communities, such as partnerships with nonprofits or mission-based organizations, sponsorship of individuals who use their platform to speak out on racial injustice, and matching donations to a broad range of qualifying organizations. American Express is also an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, immigrants, and people living with disabilities.
III. External Communications
American Express has issued a public statement, both on social media and in a public memo, addressing racial injustice that acknowledged that they can be doing better to combat racial inequality within their company. However, it did not include specific calls to action or explicitly state "Black Lives Matter." Since June 2020, 10% - 20% of the brand's social media content has been centered around racial injustice with posts seeming performative in nature. While the brand has made an effort to include ethnic diversity, specifically increasing Black representation, aside from a post for Pride, there is little to no evidence on social media of inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community (beyond posting for Pride), people living with disabilities, or a wide range of models with varying body types.
