The difference between organizations that implement diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives well and those that stumble is intentionality. Two years after the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, people of color are still waiting to see systemic change economically, politically and socially.
Companies and brands that employ millions of workers can make a tremendous impact here if that influence is wielded to take a stance on social justice issues, level the playing field for black and brown workers, and increase representation in marketing and advertising.
That work begins with the talent pipeline. Organizations that intentionally fill the pipeline with diverse candidates are more likely to hire employees with diverse backgrounds. That diversity impacts culture, innovation, creativity and, ultimately, business outcomes.
For marketers, when hiring, it’s important to remember that what’s happening inside the organization often shows up on the outside. Without cultural competence and representation, inclusive marketing will be difficult to achieve. Simply put, failing to diversify your talent pipeline is why your marketing is missing the mark.
In this episode of The New Mainstream podcast, Carole Smith, Marketing Director and Executive Sponsor of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council at Aquent, discusses the role of diversity in talent acquisition and how it improves business outcomes.
The United States is facing a demographics crisis. Simply put, we’re getting old. The average American is ten years older than average Americans were in 1970. We’re aging as a nation because we’re not having babies at the replacement level of 2.1 children per couple. The ratio varies considerably by race, but even Hispanics who were having 2.35 children per couple in 2010 now have only 1.88. Non-Hispanic Whites are averaging 1.55. [bctt tweet="If we close the borders and continue along this path, there will eventually be too many people over age 65 for the working population to support." username="@ThinkNowGlobal"] The obvious solution is to have more children, but convincing people to have babies isn't easy. Japan and South Korea pay people to have children, yet their birth rates are still just 1.3 and .81, respectively.
In addition to having too high a ratio of older people to support, there are other problems associated with an aging population. Increased healthcare expenses and a shortage of healthcare workers are already a problem, and the economy will have difficulty growing with a shrinking population. As American companies increasingly find it challenging to fill positions, they will start filling them overseas through remote work and physically moving offices and factories.
So, what’s the answer? Immigration. In the late 1800s, the percentage of foreign-born people in the U.S. hit a high of around 15%. It’s currently about 14.6%. The immigration boom happening at the Southern Border is real. It’s also a good thing. Letting people who want to work in the country and allowing them to support our aging population with their payroll and sales taxes is the easiest way for Millennials and Gen Z to have the benefits of Social Security and Medicare available for them when they retire.
The U.S. is fortunate in that it is still able to attract immigrants. Some countries in Eastern Europe have lost as much as 26% of their population since the early ’90s. Our overall population is not yet decreasing, but for the first time in American history, the population of non-Hispanic Whites shrank from 197 million in 2010 to 193 million in 2021. If it were not for minority births and immigration, the U.S., too, would be shrinking.
Increasing Immigration, however, has the support of only 27% of Americans, whereas decreasing it is supported by 38%. Most people who say they don’t support increased immigration say it’s because of the economic costs associated with absorbing new immigrants. Economically, however, having young people move here and have children is a bargain. Immigrants are younger and healthier than the general population and thus contribute far more economically to the U.S. than they take. Even low-wage immigrants with low levels of education help our economy. Industries like agriculture, construction and apparel would lose a third of their workforces without immigration. The lack of workers to fill entry level, low skilled jobs is also fueling inflation.
[bctt tweet="Most demographers and business leaders believe immigration is a net good for the country." username="@ThinkNowGlobal"] The political right doesn’t agree. In Europe, countries with right-wing governments and the most significant population declines tend to be most fervently anti-immigration. In the U.S., the political right gets much of its support from rural districts experiencing job losses due to globalization and urbanization. In these areas, immigrants are viewed as a threat to jobs. Interestingly, immigrants are saving jobs in rural districts by filling low-wage agricultural jobs that native-born residents don’t want to fill. If this flow of workers were to be stopped, farmers would have to grow fewer labor-intensive crops like fruits and vegetables and raise fewer farm animals due to the lack of workers.
Not all conservative areas are against immigration. States like Michigan and Ohio with older industrial cities, are actively recruiting immigrants to fill jobs and contribute to their tax bases. Republican Senators like Marco Rubio and Republican members of Congress who represent high-immigration districts in California, Texas and South Florida are generally pro-immigration because they see how immigrants contribute to their communities firsthand. Once people get to know individual immigrants, their views tend to become more accepting.
Unfortunately, we don’t often hear politicians on the left or right sing the praises of immigration. Even pro-immigration Democrats often talk about securing the border first before addressing immigration. This feeds the notion that the U.S. is somehow under attack by immigrants. The reason we have high levels of illegal immigration is that the legal immigration system is broken. We can’t even agree to give DACA recipients – immigrants brought here as children – permanent residency. Instead, we force foreigners who earn U.S. college degrees to leave the country after they graduate.
[bctt tweet="Speaking up about the benefits of immigration and having positive interactions with immigrants can slowly shift public perception." username="@ThinkNowGlobal"] ThinkNow was founded by an immigrant and the son of an immigrant. We’ve created jobs for native-born Americans in California, Indiana, Wisconsin, Georgia, Connecticut, and Nevada. Welcoming the next generation of immigrants to the country will ensure our children and grandchildren have access to the American Dream we’ve been fortunate enough to have experienced.
This October, ThinkNow sponsored IDEAS AMAI 2022, one of the largest conferences for the insights industry, particularly for LATAM market research. The Mexican Association of Market Intelligence and Opinion Agencies (AMAI) works to maintain data quality and transparency in market research in Mexico. The event marked AMAI's 30th anniversary, and the mood was festive.
The format of this year's event was different from previous years as it focused on small group sessions led by industry insiders who shared insights from their careers. The objective was not to sell or argue about the best research method but to listen to and learn from speakers and colleagues.
Here are a few takeaways from some of the sessions.
There was a sense of camaraderie and collaboration at AMAI 2022. Researchers gathered to share experiences and learn from some of the best in the field. Access to such diverse perspectives helps broaden our vision of the industry, the companies we represent, and the clients we serve.
Minority small businesses are driving the U.S. economy, particularly women-owned firms. Forty percent of U.S. businesses are women-owned. Black women represent the fastest-growing segment of entrepreneurs, and there are over 2 million Latina-owned businesses in the country. Large corporations have become increasingly interested in supporting small businesses over the last two years. Just recently, Macy’s announced plans to invest $30 million to help minority-owned businesses in retail scale, and there have been a number of other announcements.
What’s important to note here is that many of these companies are in it for the long haul. When minority businesses thrive, business owners and employees reinvest those funds in their communities. Thriving communities stimulate a healthy economy, resulting in more discretionary spending, benefiting all businesses. But companies looking to partner with minority-owned businesses must do so from a place of empathy and authenticity. How organizations show up in diverse communities matters. Helping small businesses scale isn’t a box to be checked, but a long-term commitment to business equity.
In this episode of The New Mainstream podcast, Roberto Martinez, Founder & CEO of the Braven Agency discusses the small business ecosystem and how corporate investment impacts business equity.
One in four adults in the United States lives with a disability. Yet, many aspects of society do not accommodate disabilities, and market research is no exception. When it comes to online surveys, people with disabilities are often left out of the conversation. The surveys do not adapt to their needs, so they are inaccessible.
Survey completion is one of the most important metrics for researchers. In the end, however, the primary objective should be to gather quality representative data. By failing to adapt a survey for blind or deaf people, for example, you imply that their opinions do not matter. Although that wasn't the researchers' intent, that's how it presents, and perception is reality.
In this episode of The New Mainstream podcast, Timothy Cornelius, founder of P3 Technology, discusses the importance of accessibility in online research and ways researchers can promote disability inclusion in online panels.
Gun violence in the U.S. is an intractable problem. A steady stream of mass shootings and increasing homicide rates do not appear to be motivating politicians to enact meaningful gun control laws. The recently passed bipartisan Safer Communities Act does little to solve the problem. Its provisions are so weak that few gun control advocates believe it will significantly impact U.S. gun-related deaths.
Democratic and Republican politicians have shied away from the problem because of the potential for electoral backlash. While more amenable to gun control, Democrats often attribute their loss of the U.S. House of Representatives in 1994 after four decades in power as a consequence of their passage of an assault weapons ban earlier that year. This led to years of anemic Democratic support for gun control while Republicans pushed to loosen gun laws under pressure from the NRA.
Weak Democratic support and Republican antipathy towards gun control has worked politically, but it appears the electorate is shifting its opinion on this issue. ThinkNow recently collaborated with Team Friday to field a nationally representative survey of 1,200 registered voters and found that 66% believe the U.S. needs stricter gun laws. Our survey results match those released by Gallup earlier this year which also found that 66% of respondents want more stringent gun laws, up from a low of 44% in 2010.
According to our data, party affiliation strongly indicates whether a respondent supports gun control. Eighty-six percent of Democratic voters, 41% of Republicans, and 69% of Independents stated that gun laws should be stricter. While 41% Republican support might seem low, it’s an improvement over the past couple of years which measured their support in the low 20s.
This shift in Republican support could have implications in Texas and Florida where a clear majority of the electorate support stricter gun laws while their legislators are actively loosening them.
More interestingly, we found that gun owners, themselves, support stricter gun laws.
While there are differences in opinion based on party affiliation, we found there are four reforms that Americans across the political spectrum can get behind. Universal background checks, red-flag laws, raising the gun buying age to 21 and permits for concealed carry all garner more than 50% support among Americans that want stricter gun laws.
Politicians in Red (leans toward Republicans) or Purple States (similar support for Democrats and Republicans) who are interested in addressing the gun problem can presumably support the four measures above without the risk of electoral backlash.
At 74%, the primary reason Americans state for buying guns is to protect their home. No other reason exceeds 50%. This would suggest that gun legislation that does not infringe on individuals’ right to protect their home has a lower chance of creating voter backlash.
Interestingly, a policy that does not have overwhelming support, even among Democrats is allowing individuals to sue gun manufacturers.
It’s possible that Americans don’t support suing manufacturers because they fear this will put them out of business and restrict their access to guns for home protection.
It’s often assumed that gun rights and gun regulations are mutually exclusive. That’s not true. Clear majorities of Americans that support gun rights want better regulation. Americans, in general, are tired of the carnage and want something done about it. In 2020, voters listed attitudes towards guns laws as one of the reasons they were voting for president. Unfortunately, the problem has only gotten worse since then. Politicians who respond to this crisis can lead the nation to a future where mass shootings and unprovoked gun deaths are a thing of the past. Those interested in maintaining the status quo may find themselves without a constituency.
Join ThinkNow and Team Friday for a webinar discussing insights from the study on Wednesday, November 2nd at 10 AM PST/ 1 PM EST.
Click here to register.
According to a 2020 study by the American Medical Association, fewer clinicians are starting their own practices and instead seeking jobs at hospitals or larger medical groups. The economic fallout of the pandemic hit private practices hard, and many are still struggling to get patients back into the office. Some clinicians are willing to forgo autonomy in favor of the paycheck security and benefits hospitals provide, particularly Black and Latino individuals, who may graduate with more debt and less support than their White counterparts.
Fintech innovations enable minority clinicians to reimagine private practice and use it as a means to return to their communities to start, scale, and sustain these small businesses and improve health outcomes in their communities.
Ease is an all-in-one financial practice operations platform that helps clinicians build new practices online in minutes, offering the first and only corporate card for private practices and other automated financial systems.
In this episode of The New Mainstream podcast, Mario Amaro, Founder and CEO of Ease, discusses how fintech can help clinicians accelerate the growth of their private practices and provide equitable healthcare.