Under Armour Inc. said it will commit to ensuring 12 percent of its employees at the director level or higher are Black by 2023 as part of a series of initiatives “to support a more diverse and inclusive future.”

The goal is in addition to an existing commitment to having 30 percent of those positions filled by Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) talent. Under Armour is currently at 20 percent for BIPOC, and 7 percent specifically Black employees.

Other objectives as part of the program include tying annual incentive pay for executives to the achievement of diversity and inclusion goals, doubling investment in sourcing historically underrepresented talent and launching a company-wide virtual series to facilitate conversations on anti-racism and racial justice issues.

The effort comes as some of Under Armour’s top ambassadors have also been among those speaking out in recent weeks calling for an end to systemic racism.

In a statement, the company said it has spent the last few weeks reviewing its efforts related to advancing diversity and inclusion in light of calls for action by communities across the world sparked by the Black Lives Matter movement.

The full statement follows:

How We Stand For Equality
Black Lives Matter has ignited a global call for action and change among our communities, our social networks, our workplaces, and even within ourselves.

Under Armour has taken the past few weeks to review the steps we’ve taken as an organization to advance diversity and inclusion and to inform the work that still needs to be done in the future. We want you—our UA family—to know that we’re committed to lasting change, and we’re holding ourselves accountable to that change.

Here are some of the actions we’re taking to support a more diverse and inclusive future.

Our Teammates
We have set measurable goals to improve the diversity of our talent in hiring and promotions.

Existing Commitments

  • In June 2019, we committed to tying representation and inclusion goals to executive compensation.
  • In September 2019, we committed to reviewing pay equity across all populations on an annual basis.
  • In January 2020, we committed to filling 30 percent of Director and above positions with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) talent by 2023. We are currently at 20 percent.
  • In January 2020, we committed to requiring that for the Director and above level in the U.S., all on-site interview slates must have at least one
  • BIPOC and one female candidate. Globally, all interview slates must have at least one female candidate.
  • In May 2020, we committed to annually publishing our representation statistics externally to hold ourselves accountable to our goals.

New and Accelerated Commitments

  • In addition to our existing commitment to 30 percent of Director and above positions filled by BIPOC, we are now committing to 12% filled by Black talent by 2023. We are currently at 20 percent and 7 percent, respectively.
  • We are committing to 30 percent of Executive Team succession slates filled by BIPOC, with 12 percent filled by Black talent, by 2023. We are currently at 17 percent and 8 percent, respectively.
  • We are increasing our commitment of tying annual incentive pay for executives to the achievement of our accelerated diversity and inclusion goals.
  • We are tripling our investment in professional development for our historically underrepresented teammates to improve retention and advancement.
  • We are doubling our investment in sourcing historically underrepresented talent with an increased focus on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and other organizations that support BIPOC. This includes our Sports Marketing roster and Rookie internship program.

Our Workplace
We have accelerated efforts to make our workplace a more inclusive environment for our BIPOC teammates.

Existing Commitments

  • In 2016, we established Teammate Resource Groups (TRGs), and today, more than 2,000 teammates participate in nine TRGs. This includes BEAT, Black Employees Achieving Together, which was established in 2016 and is over 250 teammates strong.
  • In April 2019, we established a dedicated Diversity, Equity & Inclusion team.
  • In September 2019, we committed to an annual review of our hiring and talent practices – including performance management, promotions, and professional development – to mitigate bias and unfairness.
  • In April 2020, we established a Diversity & Inclusion Council to accelerate our D&I strategy.
  • In May 2020, we launched a mandatory unconscious bias training for all teammates.

New and Accelerated Commitments

  • We launched a company-wide virtual series to facilitate meaningful conversations on anti-racism and racial justice issues. In August 2020, we are launching mandatory training for our leaders on cultural competency and building inclusive environments.
  • We are assessing our product creation cycle and our marketing processes to ensure they represent BIPOC voices and align with our values of inclusivity.
  • We are regularly reviewing our progress against our diversity and inclusion commitments with our Board of Directors.
  • We are designating Juneteenth as a paid company holiday beginning in 2021 and will provide programming and resources to encourage ongoing reflection and self-development around the issues of racial equity and justice.

Our Community
We are prioritizing our philanthropy efforts to support Black communities in our hometown of Baltimore and beyond.

Existing Commitments

  • We remain committed to investing a minimum of 40 percent of our annual philanthropic portfolio in Black-led organizations.
  • We are committed to evaluating all current partners serving Black youth and identifying those that we can transition from an annual commitment to a multi-year partnership.
  • In April 2020, we provided dedicated annual funding to our Teammate Resource Groups to allocate to programs that serve BIPOC and historically underrepresented communities, as they see fit.

New and Accelerated Commitment

  • Moving forward, we are committing to investing in organizations supporting social justice and racial equity.
  • We have increased our teammate volunteer service benefit by eight hours for a total of 40 hours available each year, to be used by teammates to partner with—and volunteer in—our communities.
  • We are launching a non-partisan global educational voting campaign, and are beginning our efforts by encouraging U.S. teammates to be civically engaged during the upcoming November election.
  • We are committing to advancing supplier diversity and purposefully creating mutually beneficial business partnerships with diverse suppliers and partners that share our values.

Photo courtesy Under Armour