Armanino Signs CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge

Armanino LLP, one of the 25 largest accounting and business consulting firms in the U.S., today announced CEO Matt Armanino signed the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge on behalf of the firm. This corresponds with Armanino’s commitment to develop programs and initiatives that identify and foster opportunities for underrepresented groups.

“We are a signatory of the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge, because it aligns with our firm’s values and expands the work we have already begun with our Women’s Advancement Network. Prioritizing diversity, from recruitment to partnership, ensures we have a team from a wide breadth of backgrounds, life experiences and points of view who will make us stronger,” said Matt Armanino, CEO of Armanino LLP. “Diversity is only effective when it is accompanied by a commitment to inclusion where everyone feels respected, is treated fairly and has the resources and opportunities to make a positive impact.”

The CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge seeks to address disparities—from race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation to age, physical abilities and belief systems—within the workforce. To this end, Armanino is expanding its leadership and diversity trainings, including unconscious bias training, has committed to having meaningful and complex conversations about the topics, and will work with a community of businesses to share best practices and pitfalls in achieving goals.

Armanino has made this a firm priority for years. Armanino’s Women’s Advancement Network (WAN) was founded to create opportunities that encourage women to consider partnership as a career goal. Founded in 2016, WAN most recently launched the Executive Access Program, pairing high-potential female managers with firm executives to build relationships with key leaders. Armanino also has a Transparency to Partnership track to educate managers on the expectations and benefits of partnership at the firm.

Both initiatives were launched after Armanino participated in the nationwide Accounting MOVE Project report, which revealed that women were opting out of partner track at twice the rate of men, and that executive sponsorship was thought to be one of the most important factors in achieving partnership. The survey also revealed a lack of understanding of the qualifications and benefits of partnership among both men and women.

Since 2016, women make up an average of 31 percent of Armanino’s internal partner promotions, outpacing the profession’s overall national average of 22 percent. This is a significant step toward the firm’s goal of reaching 50 percent within five years.

To learn more about the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge, please visit: https://www.ceoaction.com/