Jamie Dimon calls himself “the least woke person I've ever met,” colleagues say.
Unlike many other CEOs, the JPMorgan CEO will tell anyone who will listen that he is not influenced by the advocacy efforts of advocacy groups like the Human Rights Campaign that have led many American companies to bow to the progressive left when it comes to boardroom policy.
I've known Dimon for years and I'm inclined to believe him.
He's also a brilliant businessman, running the country's largest bank, making huge profits and preventing major scandals.
But closer inspection reveals that Dimon, and by extension JPMorgan, have woken up blind spots.
Some of this is presented in my new book, “Go Woke Go Broke: The Inside Story of the Radicalization of Corporate America.”
Remember, he was photographed kneeling during a visit to a JPM branch during Black Lives Matter riots.
(Now that BLM support has waned, his spokesperson asserts that he was kneeling to avoid disturbing the people behind him.)
In 2020, when COVID-19 lockdowns were hurting people of all races, he established the $30 billion “Racial Equity Commitment” fund.
Under Dimon's leadership, the powerful Business Roundtable embraced a “stakeholder capitalism” model of corporate governance, paving the way for groups like the aforementioned Human Rights Campaign (HRC) to have a say in corporate decision-making.
Stakeholder capitalism has allowed HRC to impose on large corporations what it calls DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), a controversial management philosophy that employs heavy-handed standards to shape hiring practices based on race and gender.
DEI is why Bud Light chose a transgender political activist to promote their beer.
That's why Disney has quotas for many of their hires.
And it's why people I spoke to for my book told me that Goldman Sachs asks applicants about their sexual orientation in interviews — a not-so-subtle suggestion that being part of an “intersectional” group improves your chances of getting the job.
Constitutionally questionable
Sure, DEI is controversial. People really hate it, and after the Dylan Mulvaney fiasco, Bud Light is no longer the best-selling beer in the country.
It may also be illegal: Many companies have eliminated DEI departments, not only because it would disempower employees personally, but also because of questionable constitutionality.
I recently learned that it's apparently not JP Morgan.
Despite a growing perception of anti-wokeness in many corporate boardrooms, JPM has maintained its allegiance to wokeism and DEI, proudly displaying its stance on its website and elsewhere.
Sure, a lot of it is the same old platitudes about how giving preferential treatment is a great thing for society and how JPMorgan is at the forefront of this field.
Some seem to go even further.
Example: In celebration of DEI, JPMorgan’s website touts that “58% of new U.S. hires are racially or ethnically diverse.”
In an increasingly diverse country, who could be against diversity?
no one.
The question is, how do companies achieve so-called levels of diversity, given the racial makeup of the U.S. population?
Where does merit come into play?
What if we considered economic status rather than race when making those decisions?
Using non-race-based criteria would likely comply with recent Supreme Court decisions on affirmative action.
The answers to these questions may be found in other information I have come across.
Amid the uproar over DEI, other companies have stopped doing business with HRC, but JPMorgan has not, The Washington Post has learned.
The bank confirmed it would be happy to participate in the group's creation of a so-called “Corporate Equality Index,” which critics say is being used by activist groups to impose strict racial equality-based hiring standards on large employers.
“Platinum Partner”
In fact, according to the HRC website, JPM is a so-called “Platinum Partner” of HRC, suggesting it has some sort of corporate ties to openly political and progressive organizations.
The company's website literally touts its plans to defeat conservative political candidates across the country, including Donald Trump in the presidential election.
When I shared all of this with JPMorgan’s leadership team, they offered a different, more moderate interpretation of the bank’s DEI policy.
They pointed to an annual letter Dimon sent to shareholders a few months ago, in which he wrote, “JPMorgan Chase will continue to adapt as the law evolves. … We are frequently asked questions, specifically about 'fairness' and what that word means. To us, it means equal treatment, equal opportunity and equal access. … Not equal outcomes.”
The bank's hiring practices reflect a diverse talent pool, from tellers to investment bankers.
“We don't have quotas,” a spokesperson told me.
“Diversity and inclusion are good for business and lead to a wider range of talent options.”
Meanwhile, JPM executives have been adamant that their deal with HRC was mediocre, centering on the DEI investigation.
Okay, but they also didn't provide any details about “platinum” status within the group, or whether that means HRC receives donations from the bank.
HRC did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Again, Jamie Dimon is a great CEO and JPMorgan is a very profitable company.
But allowing his bank to become cozy with the political left would tarnish this image.
