Simon Business School’s MBA programme named most-diverse

The Simon Business School at the University of Rochester has been named the most diverse MBA programme in the US by U.S. News & World Report for its African American, Black, Hispanic American, and Native American students enrolment in its full-time MBA programme last year.

Simon Business School’s full-time MBA Class of 2022 hails from 19 different countries, while 46% of domestic students are from historically underrepresented groups. 42% of full-time MBAs at the school are women.

The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) which accredits business schools and business programmes champions the idea that when business schools unlock access, reduce barriers, and intentionally devise strategies to engage disadvantaged or underrepresented populations, they create an environment of success and enhanced excellence.

The Simon Business School boasts a diverse student profile and fosters diversity of thought throughout the institution’s curricular and co-curricular activities.

Dean of the Simon Business School, Sevin Yeltekin said, “I am proud to say that Simon’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion has been long-standing,”

Yeltekin added that Simon Business School has been a leader in diversity since the late sixtiesSimon Business School has been a leader in diversity since the late sixties when they were one of the first schools to join the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, a group that promotes diversity among American businesses.

The business school has also partnered with several other crucial organisations that have helped propel the institution to the top spot in the U.S. News & World Report rankings including Prospanica, Forte Foundation, Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT), and ROMBA.

“All of these partners have contributed greatly to the success at Simon Business School,” said Yeltekin. “Business is growing more diverse and our graduates must understand how to harness the power of diversity to solve tomorrow’s challenges.”

Diversity has proven to be an important element in business success, a McKinsey & Co report titled “Delivering through Diversity” revealed that the more diverse a company’s leadership was, the better they perform financially.

Additionally, data from 1,000 companies across 12 countries showed that those ranking in the top quartile were 33% more likely to see above-average profitability than those with less diverse leadership teams.

Similarly, a recent report by ZoomInfo, a business-to-business database shows that over the last five years, there has been a 113% increase in the number of executives that hold diversity and inclusion titles in organisations.

Equity, diversity, and inclusion are some of the most important elements of healthy workplace culture. A Boston Consulting Group study found that companies with more diverse management teams have 19% higher revenues due to innovation.

However, the disparity is clear: A study by LeanIn and McKinsey found that men and women of colour make up significantly less of the corporate pipeline at every level, compared to their white male and female counterparts.

The report found that white males made up 45% of managers and white females made up 27%. There is a stark contrast with the number of males of colour, who made up 17% of managers while and females of colour only made up 12% of managers.

The report by Boston Consulting Group also suggests that companies with above-average diversity on their leadership teams, in both developing and developed economies, report a greater payoff from innovation and higher income margins.

Diversity and inclusion are important elements in healthy workplace culture and every manager or leader in an organisation needs to understand its importance, and actively implement diversity policies in the workplace.

ZoomInfo’s report additionally states that close to 40% of Fortune 500 companies have recently onboarded an executive whose function focuses on areas surrounding diversity and inclusion.

Additionally, the report notes the steady rise in demand for diversity and inclusion roles in the workplace: In 2002, less than 500 companies offered positions for roles surrounding the areas of diversity and inclusion.