Why do corporations put up with DEI?

There are three reasons.

1. Even though they are public corporations, there are a few index funds and hedge funds that control almost all the shares. Blackrock (Larry Fink), Vanguard, Schwab, Fidelity, and few others own a controlling voting share in every corporation. Even if it is less than 50%, their voting bloc gives them effective control.

Larry Fink and friends are the ones pushing DEI. Any CEO or Board of Directors who resisted would lose their jobs. Being on the Board of Directors of a public corporation is a high-pay low-effort job. Why ruin your gravy train by pissing off Larry Fink? Some people serve on multiple boards. Plus, these sorts of people tend to be empty suit cucks anyway.

2. Larry Fink and the big banks have successfully tied a corporation's bond rating to its ESG score. Pretty much every large corporation is dependent on borrowing money at cheap rates. For example, if a corporation does $5B profit on $100B sales, they're probably borrowing $95B. If they aren't able to borrow cheaply, there goes their business model.

3. If a CEO came out publicly saying that DEI was bullshit, all his "diverse" employees would promptly sue him for causing a "hostile work environment". Being rude to someone in any way can now be creatively interpreted as grounds for a lawsuit.

In a sense, corporations are doubly screwed. They can't refuse to hire "diverse" people, because then they get sued for discrimination. But once they hire them, they can't just put them in a corner earning a paycheck for doing nothing. They have to give them real responsibilities. But, any attempt to hold them accountable for doing their job is "microaggressions" or "creating a hostile work environment".

So they're screwed either way. Get sued for not hiring "diverse" people (i.e. lowering standards to hire them). But once hired, there is no path to force them to attempt to perform their jobs.

At work, there are a couple of "diverse" woefully unqualified people. Do you know what happens? After a few years, they quit and presumably got a higher-paying job elsewhere! After being completely unqualified for their job, they're still able to get an even better job. The presumption is "They were in this job for a few years without getting fired, so they must be qualified for the next rung on the corporate ladder." Also, they're desperate to hire and promote someone to fill their own DEI quota. But it's impossible to fire someone who is hired for diversity.