Free Enterprise Project Calls Out Proxy Advisor Institutional Shareholder Services For Opposing Viewpoint Diversity – And Doing Potential Financial Harm To Its Clients
Indianapolis, IN/Washington, D.C. –Eli Lilly rejected the Free Enterprise Project’s calls to increase the true diversity of its board of directors by expanding its nominating procedures to consider viewpoint diversity, rather than just racial and gender diversity, when it appoints new members.
At today’s annual meeting of Eli Lilly shareholders, the company’s board stood opposed to a Free Enterprise Project (FEP) shareholder proposal that sought to expand the viewpoint diversity of the pharmaceutical giant’s leadership.
At the meeting, National Center General Counsel and FEP Director Justin Danhof, Esq., presented the proposal, noting:
Across America, company after company are adopting board diversity policies based on race and gender. These policies have the stated goal of reducing corporate groupthink and require companies to interview an underrepresented minority and a woman for each open board spot. This isn’t diversity. It’s racism and sexism. Not all women think alike based on the fact that they are women. Similarly, not all Asian or Latino or black Americans think the same based on their respective skin colors.
Our Proposal simply seeks to extend that candidate pool to ensure it represents a diversity of viewpoints. In order to avoid groupthink, the company should seek people who actually think differently, not just appear differently.
FEP’s proposal further notes that:
True diversity comes from diversity of thought. There is ample evidence that many companies operate in ideological hegemony that eschews conservative people, thoughts, and values. This ideological echo chamber can result in groupthink that is the antithesis of diversity. This can be a major risk factor for shareholders.
The National Center for Public Policy Research is a communications and research foundation supportive of a strong national defense and dedicated to providing free market solutions to today’s public policy problems. We believe that the principles of a free market, individual liberty and personal responsibility provide the greatest hope for meeting the challenges facing America in the 21st century.
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Across America, company after company are adopting board diversity policies based on race and gender. These policies have the stated goal of reducing corporate groupthink and require companies to interview an underrepresented minority and a woman for each open board spot. This isn’t diversity. It’s racism and sexism. Not all women think alike based on the fact that they are women. Similarly, not all Asian or Latino or black Americans think the same based on their respective skin colors.
