Diversity, equity and inclusion

Our commitment

We are committed to cultivating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment where all employees can be their authentic selves and fully contribute to meet the needs of our employees, members, and the communities we serve. We are also committed to advancing health equity, promoting social justice, and cultivating a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment both within and outside of Blue Shield.

Where we are today

While our organization has reached some important milestones, notably in our representation of women and people of color and in pay equity, we continue to strive to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in all areas. Our goal is to foster an organization that truly embraces the uniqueness of each individual and provides an environment for every employee to thrive. Here’s where we stand today:
 

• 40% of those who sit on our Board of Directors are people of color

• More than 50% of those who sit on our Board of Directors are women, including the Chair

• More than 50% of our CEO direct reports are women

• More than 40% of our CEO direct reports are people of color

• More than 50% of our executives are women

• More than 40% of our employees are members of one or more employee resource groups

• We have no pay gap between men and women or between racial and ethnic groups in comparable jobs and a deep commitment to maintaining this trend

• Received more than a dozen awards in 2020-21 recognizing our diversity, equity, and inclusion accomplishments. View award details here.

How we’ll continue progress

Our continued commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion upholds our values and advances our goal of creating a healthcare system that is worthy of our family and friends and sustainably affordable. Our holistic approach focuses on four key areas:
 

• Our people, by creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce and workplace. Our work starts within our own walls. Our initiatives range from inspiring greater engagement and inclusiveness to ensure our workforce is representative of our members and the communities we serve

• Health equity, by being a thought leader in our industry. We’re reimagining health care and identifying ways to reduce the inequities experienced on an individual, community and systemic basis

• Social justice, by calling out what’s wrong and standing for what’s right. We’re bringing together diverse voices to address tough societal challenges, influence policies and invest in promising solutions to support our communities

• Business growth, by driving accountability across the organization we will effectively leverage the benefits of diversity to serve more Californians.

Supplier diversity

At Blue Shield, we recognize the value of maintaining a diverse supplier chain reflective of the communities and members we serve by:

• Streamlining the procurement process through a diversity-focused lens

• Fostering the development and expansion of certified small, minority, veteran, and women-owned businesses

• Empower these business enterprises by creating a clear pathway to provide products and services

Are you a small, minority-owned, veteran-owned, or women-owned business enterprise interested in working with Blue Shield of California?

Monitoring and governing our progress

Blue Shield of California established a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Leadership Council, founded in 2017, and a Health Equity Steering Committee, assembled in November 2019, as critical governance forums to reinforce and enable our strategies.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Leadership Council -The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership Council is made up of diverse executives, spanning all business lines, who are deeply passionate about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Together, they created a comprehensive, holistic approach to tackle inequities across our four workstreams – our people, business growth, social justice, and health equity. In addition to representing their business areas and embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion into their teams’ work, they also serve as executive liaisons to our seven Employee Resource Groups by providing guidance and direction in alignment with the organization’s overarching strategy.

Health Equity Steering Committee - Our Health Equity Steering Committee was formed in November of 2019 to develop and execute a plan to address inequities. Actions of this committee and our Healthcare and Community Health Transformation team include getting and using meaningful data to assess, monitor, and inform inequity work as well as soliciting and integrating diverse perspectives to create targeted initiatives.