Agree, or disagree? “Marketing doomed corporate DEI initiatives by overpromising transformation and underdelivering results.”
(From the article, “Meta, Amazon, McDonald’s: Marketing’s Role In The DEI Collapse.”)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/gillianoakenfull/2025/01/13/meta-amazon-mcdonalds-marketings-role-in-the-dei-collapse/
I wholly disagree with this. It feels like an effort to pass the buck. DEI wasn't doomed by marketing; it was doomed by companies not fully believing in it and only investing in it to avoid bad PR. If they actually believed in its value, it would still be going strong.
Pro
Im in the middle on this. Companies only “invested” in DEI for optics. That part I’ll stick to for sure. But at the same time, I’ve seen only one example of “effective” implementation of DEI polices. I’d love to see more, but I haven’t come across them and I’ve looked. In a world where bottom lines matter the most, it’s easy to see how these companies that weren’t committed to it to begin with would cut it.
I think a lot of DEI efforts were half-hearted and were essentially set up for failure. So making marketing the scapegoat doesn't add up. Like a lot of corporate failures, there are a number of reasons behind it. And ultimately it came down to a well-organized and well-funded campaign against any diversity in American life.