Microsoft was founded in April 1975, right around the time that the first personal computers were invented. By the 1980s, it was a major tech company, and today, it boasts a market cap of $3.2 trillion.
While a lot has changed, Lindsay-Rae McIntyre, Microsoft’s chief diversity officer of more than six years, told HR Brew that diversity and inclusion has remained a core part of the company’s values.
So while some companies have rolled back on DE&I or are quietly moving forward with initiatives, Microsoft is openly pushing ahead. “We need to listen to the experiences of our employees…and make sure diversity is at the core of their experience,” McIntyre said.
The company recently released its annual diversity and inclusion report, exploring the spectrum of representation within the organization, from women to racial minorities, disabled workers, and veterans. And while Microsoft has seen some progress since it started tracking representation in 2019, its chief diversity officer told HR Brew that there’s always room for improvement as the company, which has 228,000 employees globally, continues to grow.
History sets precedent. The nearly 50-year-old company began its DE&I journey roughly 40 years ago, with the appointment of its first diversity director and the creation of ERGs including Blacks at Microsoft and GLEAM, for LGBTQIA+ workers.
Since then, the program has expanded to offer gender-affirming health benefits for US employees, seven other ERGs, a neurodiversity hiring program, and DE&I-driven performance goals for leaders.
“At Microsoft, diversity and inclusion isn’t a trend. It’s a core part of our business,” McIntyre said.
Current representation. The report highlighted that the representation of women and racial minorities has increased in senior leadership roles over the last five years. However, the numbers remain low: Globally, women make up 29% of leadership roles, up 5% from 2020. In the US, Black and Latinx talent account for less than 5% of executive roles, having experienced just over 1% growth since 2020.
Gender diversity at Microsoft is roughly in line with that at some of its biggest competitors, including Dell and Intuit. However, on racial diversity, it lags behind Dell, where 16% of US employees are Black or Latino.
Globally, 54.6% of Microsoft’s workforce identifies as a racial or ethnic minority and 32.8% are women, a 2.6% increase since 2020. Microsoft has seen incremental increases in representation of racial minorities in its US workforce since 2020, as well: 35.9% of workers identify as Asian (up 1%), 6.6% as Black and African American (up 1.9%), and 8% as Hispanic and Latinx (up 1.6%). McIntyre admits the company could be doing better, as the numbers were largely unchanged from 2023 to 2024.
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Beyond the numbers. Microsoft relies on various initiatives to build more diversity at every level of its business. It believes that development programs, like Microsoft Leap—which offers participants education and hands-on experience needed to break into the tech industry—have helped to diversify and grow early-career professionals. It also partners with more than 600 universities for its two-year Aspire program, which helps graduates find the right career path.
In 2019, Microsoft created Discover Day, during which global employees can attend virtual fireside chats and educational sessions, and connect with their colleagues. Some 27,000 employees participated in this year’s event.
The company also believes that allyship is essential for diversity and inclusion and introduced it as a core part of its DE&I efforts in 2018. Employees who “observe allyship behavior” at Microsoft have reported feeling more empowered, energized, and that their work is meaningful.
Big picture. McIntyre admits that there are still areas where Microsoft can improve. She believes that her revised role, which was expanded last year to include learning and development, will help the company achieve its diversity aspirations by ensuring that it not only has a diverse workforce, but a diverse workforce with opportunities for career growth.
“We make sure to really invest in our employees,” McIntyre said, noting that the company is developing a platform where employees can map out their careers, and even lay the groundwork to move into new ones.
In the six years since McIntyre joined, the company has evolved and the workforce has nearly doubled, but she said Microsoft continues to lean on its employees and their diverse experiences to ensure it serves everyone, from its customers to its current and future workers.