DE&I Overview - DE&I Boxes
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Diversity
We aim to access the widest talent pool to create innovative, high performing teams that drive our business growth strategy.
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Equity
We are intentional about ensuring that everyone is treated fairly, and that our people are supported and afforded equal opportunities to succeed.
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Inclusion
No one is left out. We act in ways that encourage authenticity and respect for all voices. We work to ensure that everyone feels like they are part of MSCI.
DE&I Overview - Statement
Diversity, equity and inclusion is the engine that drives the company and our culture: When exposed to a variety of viewpoints and experiences, we consider new possibilities. And when fully supported and understood, we begin to thrive so we can best serve our clients.
DE&I Overview - People, Leaders, Community cards
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Our people
Enhance strategies to attract, retain and advance diverse talent at all levels across the firm and all offices across the globe.
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Our communities
Increase employee, investor, client, vendor and partner engagement on DE&I issues, and boost visibility of our DE&I commitment.
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Our leaders
Promote inclusive leadership, foster an equitable workplace where all share a sense of belonging, and build an executive accountability framework to track progress.
DE&I Our People - Statement
Our people
DE&I is more than a set of metrics – it underpins our culture, fueling the innovation and collaboration needed to deliver the best results for our clients.
DE&I Our People - Our workforce
MSCI workforce
DE&I Our People - Diversity metrics & Pay equity
Diversity metrics
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Equal Employment Opportunity
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Sustainability Accounting Standard Board
Pay equity disclosure
Pay equity is central to MSCI’s values and a priority for our company. We regularly audit pay equity for employees globally to ensure that all employees are paid fairly, and we conduct a rigorous process to ensure gender pay equity globally as well as pay equity on the basis of race or ethnicity in the U.S. Our pay equity assessments review the compensation of employees in similar roles, accounting for factors that appropriately explain differences in pay such as experience, level and location. To the extent any unexplained pay gaps are found, those gaps are addressed.
We are proud to report that, as of our most recent assessment, MSCI has no meaningful differences in pay based on gender globally or based on race or ethnicity in the U.S., and any differences in pay are explained by appropriate factors. We commit to continue to publish information on pay equity for these groups. We believe this transparency is important to all our stakeholders and holds us accountable to our diversity, equity and inclusion commitment.
DE&I Our People - Development & training
Development and training
We continually focus on diverse representation in premier leadership and management development programs and other learning offerings, in addition to targeted development for diverse talent.
Women’s leadership
Women’s leadership
Annual DE&I Summit
Underrepresented ethnic talent
Women in technology
Global Women’s Mentoring Program
We offer high-performing VP women at MSCI a formal program that includes mentoring by our managing directors and training sessions on personal branding, executive presence, influencing and other topics.
Our annual multi-day educational, networking and speaker event is designed to cultivate stronger leaders from diverse backgrounds and to further promote our global commitment to the deepening of workplace inclusion and belonging. The summit, which focuses on leadership development and strategic planning, is also an opportunity to recognize the achievements of our employee resource group leaders, and to provide them with the opportunity to share their progress and future plans with the chief diversity officer and their executive committee sponsors.
McKinsey’s Connected Leaders Academy
For high-performing senior associates, VPs and executive directors, we offer a career advancement program through McKinsey’s Connected Leaders Academy. McKinsey’s Executive Leadership and Management Accelerator programs seek to empower ethnic minority talent by integrating evidence-based learning into a virtual environment with multicultural faculty.
Cross Company Mid-Career Talent Accelerator
For high-performing VPs and early-career executive directors, we offer a career advancement program through the Black British Business Awards organization. The program seeks to empower ethnic minority talent by integrating evidence-based learning into a virtual environment with a multicultural faculty.
Women in Tech (WIT)
Our employee resource group focuses on accelerating career and leadership development for those in technical roles. It sponsors our Women in Innovation (WIN) initiative that creates opportunities for women in technology to work on innovative projects with senior leadership support.
DE&I Our people - Partnerships
MSCI Research
MSCI research
For more MSCI research, visit our Research and Insights page.
DE&I Our community - Statement
Our communities
At MSCI, we encourage our employees to reach their full potential, which is why we work to ensure our people have the resources they need and that their voices are heard.
DE&I our community - our voices
MSCI voices
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“Something I like to tell people when they join MSCI is, ‘You’ve landed at a safe place. The company wants you to be happy and feel secure.’ And it’s true. MSCI understands that being visible in a safe environment empowers you to do a better job.”
César Ramírez
Executive Director, Index Management Research
Monterrey
Pride & Allies
In 2008, a senior partner informed me I had no future as a gay man at the Mexican firm where I worked. So when I left and joined MSCI, I hid my identity, fearful it would damage my career. Over time, I began to see that senior leaders here celebrate employees, exactly how they are. Concealing my identify had come at a cost as I missed years of opportunities to build connections. I wondered why someone didn’t tell me not to worry. Then I realized, maybe that person is me. As part of Pride & Allies, I became more vocal about my identity – and so did others around me. I organized speaking events and shared statistics on our progress as a community, creating that reassuring voice I didn’t have. I wanted people to feel the same release I did when I let everything go, feeling as if half my brain suddenly began functioning again and I could focus on what mattered. I became the guy who said, ‘I’m out and I’m relevant, and you should be too.’
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"I've been passionate about sustainable living for as long as I can remember — perpetually seeking an answer to the question, 'How can I help save the planet?'"
Kate Smith
Vice President and Legal Counsel, EMEA
London
Climate Action Network
When I first joined MSCI in 2013, the company was gaining momentum as a growing provider of ESG and climate solutions. And I thought, if we can successfully promote sustainability practices on our website, why couldn’t we also persuade our co-workers to change their habits while at the office? It started as a grassroots effort as we encouraged employees to adopt the most effective recycling and sustainable living habits, whether renouncing single-use plastics or walking to work. We began organizing events to reach a wider audience, administering virtual quizzes on sustainable living to people in New York, Mumbai, Monterrey and London. Our “recycling” group evolved into a force for climate-related change, emerging as the Climate Action Network it is today with chapters around the world. MSCI began reinforcing these messages early on – not just with clients but with its own people. And I love it. I love seeing how the collective wisdom of our diverse world views can spark new thinking on sustainability and influence the choices we make in our daily lives.
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"MSCI can’t solve the world’s problems, but it can help its people and their families. That is not a mandate that comes from a single executive, but a state of mind that is embraced throughout our firm."
Moses Adediran Adetiba
Managing Director, Deputy Chief Information Security Officer
London
Black Leadership Network
I became chair of the Black Leadership Network (BLN) in 2020 as a wave of historic protests took flight around the world in the wake of George Floyd’s killing. While communities, police departments and governments grappled with that aftermath, companies faced an opportunity to examine their corporate culture. At MSCI, I felt the trauma of Floyd’s death and I could see others did too. We knew we needed an outlet, an environment that encouraged candid conversations about race. We wanted to become a more diverse company. The question was, how do we begin? We started by asking Black people to talk about the issues they faced. Through BLN, we reformed our recruitment, retention and development strategies to help create more opportunities for Black employees, all with the support and encouragement of our leadership. We focused on awareness and education, and discovered we had allies at the company we didn’t know existed. BLN inspired people to venture out of professional comfort zones to share life experiences with colleagues who knew little about their personal views. And that led to new results for us as a firm.
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“We want to tap into the growing pool of Latin American and American Latin talent and we have built a powerful employee support network to help us do that. We believe it’s critical to integrate unique perspectives and intersectional differences into our company culture.”
Marianela Hoz de Vila
Executive Director, Asset Management Analytics Solutions Sales
New York
Hola! MSCI
I have learned in my time at MSCI never to underestimate the value of a good company support network. Since joining the New York office in 2006, I have seen how we can play a critical role in shaping the career paths of fellow employees, arming them with confidence to overcome impediments to growth. That is particularly true with Hola! MSCI, an ecosystem where Hispanic/Latino professionals receive the representation, support and sponsorship needed to become leaders throughout the company. As a founder, I have discovered a unique platform to connect with both rising young professionals and veteran industry leaders in finance and beyond. While recruitment isn’t our only goal, we are working to build better candidate pipelines into the Hispanic/Latino talent pool. It’s about embracing a diversity of perspectives, which challenges everyone around the table to look through a different prism when building new tools and solutions. I’m incredibly proud to work for MSCI, an organization that values, honors and actively seeks diversity in so many meaningful ways.
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“The Women’s Leadership Forum has inspired and empowered us to effect change – within the firm and ourselves. As we connect and support one another through the forum, we evolve together and make a real impact.”
Sheila Xie
Executive Director, Hong Kong & Taiwan Client Coverage
Hong Kong
Women’s Leadership Forum
I organized our first MSCI Women’s Leadership Forum (WLF) event in Hong Kong in 2017. Today, I’m thrilled to see how far we’ve come. We have created new leadership opportunities for women by doubling our APAC chapters and sponsoring industry initiatives such as Women in ETFs. Through fireside chats, book clubs, networking events, panel discussions, coaching and mentorship programs, we have formed a support system based on constant interaction. We learn from the real-life success stories of women leaders. And we’ve had real impact, helping women expand their networks and gain new skills. We’ve strengthened our talent pool while becoming a voice for gender equality issues. For me, the WLF has been a source of inspiration as well as a way to gain skills to advance my career at MSCI, going from an enterprising sales VP to an established executive director and regional business lead. I’m excited to help more colleagues succeed and develop a clearer and stronger voice in the industry.
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“We embrace cultural diversity at MSCI. And the Asian Support Network has become not only a way to celebrate those cultures, but to help us understand our differences so we can work together as one cohesive global organization.”
Cody Dong
Associate, APAC ESG & Climate Research
Shanghai
Asian Support Network
With offices around the globe, MSCI sees the world through a very culturally diverse lens. The goal of the Asian Support Network (ASN) is to celebrate that diversity, while serving as a professional support group to help Asian employees take advantage of leadership opportunities. But in the Asia-Pacific region, where people from countries as diverse as Japan, India and the Philippines must interact regularly as part of a growing regional economy, the ASN has also emerged as a unifying network to overcome cultural barriers, fostering better communication among our offices. How one country uses our ESG data may not be how another country uses the data and we want everyone to play a role in shaping our regional strategy. Through cultural trivia contests, “food parties” and other events, we cultivate new professional relationships in other countries that help us decipher our work. ASN helps us forge new bonds with people, bridging cultural gaps to come together as one collective voice.
DE&I our community - our employee community
Our employee community
2013
The Women's Leadership Forum (WLF) was founded to create awareness and provide tools and skills to support the development of women.
2016
The Pride & Allies group helps create an inclusive culture in support of our LGBTQ+ colleagues where all MSCI employees can be their authentic selves.
2019
As part of the company's Corporate Responsibility efforts, the Climate Action Network (CAN) was launched to educate and increase awareness of critical environmental issues and challenges.
2020
The Women in Technology (WIT) group focuses on accelerating career and leadership development for those in technical roles.
2020
The Black Leadership Network (BLN) promotes the recruitment, leadership, development and recognition of Black employees at MSCI.
2021
The Asian Support Network (ASN) aims to create an inclusive space for MSCI's Asian colleagues through affirming their Asian identities and experiences, promoting educational, cultural and social awareness, and providing leadership and professional opportunities.
2021
The All Abilities Network seeks to empower current and prospective employees with disabilities through equal opportunity to thrive in an inclusive culture, and welcomes and supports allies and friends.
2021
Hola! MSCI seeks to unite and develop the MSCI Hispanic community by empowering, inspiring and connecting employees, allies and clients.
DE&I our community - video
Women in Innovation (WiiN)
Watch our video on Women in Innovation – part of our MSCI Women in Tech employee group – to learn more about our efforts to accelerate career and leadership development for women.
Executive DE&I Council
Executive DE&I Council (EDC) members, senior leaders from all businesses and functions firmwide, serve alongside subject matter experts, leading workstreams aligned with our global DE&I strategies on talent, senior leader engagement and accountability, and stakeholder engagement.
The EDC is a forum to accelerate our DE&I progress as we grow in size and complexity. Members debate, influence the direction of, and take steps to integrate our global DE&I strategy throughout the firm.
Inclusion & Belonging Council
The Inclusion & Belonging Council is comprised of employee resource group leaders and other global DE&I advocates who proactively work with local leaders including HR and office heads to adapt the global DE&I strategy to local circumstances and requirements. There are roughly 30 members from across most geographies, functions and levels.
Through the Inclusion & Belonging Council, we support wide geographical engagement with the DE&I strategy, ensuring adequate focus on our most populous regions outside of the U.S. and the U.K. from the cities of Mumbai, Pune, Budapest, Monterrey and Manila.
DE&I our leaders - statement, exec account, inclusive leadership
Our leaders
At MSCI, we envision a workplace where ideas have no bounds. We know that an engaged workforce results in better performance and increased shareholder value. Our leaders are accountable for our DE&I agenda and fully committed to creating measurable and sustainable change.
Executive Accountability Framework
We developed an Executive Accountability Framework (EAF) to establish the philosophy and process to assess each managing director’s progress against DE&I goals and overall DE&I performance, considering specific goals set by each managing director at the beginning of the year.
The EAF stresses that creating an inclusive environment is as important as improving diverse representation; therefore, managing directors are assessed on their qualitative and quantitative results with a range of potential outcomes, including those relating to talent development, retention, hiring practices and engagement. In addition, leaders are assessed as to whether they consistently display inclusive leadership behaviors and drive activity that fosters an inclusive environment.
Inclusive leadership
DE&I is not just about increasing our diverse population, but about ensuring that we create the right environment for all people, including diverse people, to thrive. We coach our managers to be inclusive leaders – to be aware of their biases, determined to address them, open to collaboration, and committed to building an equitable workplace where all employees feel like they belong. Diverse talent thrives in inclusive cultures, and when diversity thrives, everyone benefits.
DE&I our leaders - behaviors
Inclusive leadership behaviors
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Act with humanity
Demonstrate social and self awareness and cross-cultural understanding
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Manage performance
Drive performance in areas such as innovation; create teams that have complementary skills, opinions, capabilities and backgrounds
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Coach, mentor and develop diverse teams
Scale impact, support the development of trusting networks, integrate diverse talent into your networks
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Develop and sponsor diverse talent across firm
Be intentional about sponsorship of diverse talent across the organization, outside of your immediate team
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Treat all people with respect
Encourage a culture where individuals can bring their authentic selves to work, actively attract, hire and develop diverse talent
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Champion the firm's DE&I priorities
Build adaptability and inclusion in your team with compassion and care, leveraging each team member's background and perspective is critical to achieving our goals
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Foster trust and belonging
Instil trust and a sense of belonging, create highly collaborative teams where people are confident to speak up, challenger assumptions and bring new and different ideas
DE&I our policies
Our policies
Code of Ethics and Business Conduct
Our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct (PDF, 205 KB) is a statement of MSCI’s commitment to integrity and the highest ethical standards in all that we do.
Global Human Rights Policy
Our Global Human Rights Policy (PDF, 107 KB) (opens in a new tab) summarizes certain of our key policies and practices that aim to ensure fundamental human rights are integrated into how we operate our business, treat our employees, develop ethics codes and policies, and interact with clients and vendors. It also reflects our commitment to a safe, inclusive and diverse workplace, and is overseen by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of our Board of Directors.
Modern Slavery Statement
Our Modern Slavery Statement summarizes our firm's commitment to protecting human rights globally and providing a fair and ethical workplace. MSCI respects the standards embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labor Organization conventions. Specifically, we strongly oppose slavery and human trafficking and will not knowingly support or conduct business with any organization involved in such activities.
Supplier Code of Conduct
Our Supplier Code of Conduct sets out MSCI’s values and expectations, including our sourcing principles, as well as the labor, human rights, environmental, legal and regulatory compliance principles we expect our suppliers to uphold. MSCI also expects its suppliers to live up to both the letter and spirit of this code.
Tia Counts quote
Tia Counts
Chief Responsibility and Chief Diversity Officer
"When we recognize the contributions of all our people and welcome a diversity of views, experiences and identities, we bring out the best in each other and gain valuable insights into our clients' needs. At MSCI, we're creating a workplace where our colleagues can focus on serving our clients while building a career they will always be proud of."
DE&I Related content
Related content
Careers and Talent
Learn moreCorporate Responsibility
Read moreSustainability Reports and Policies
Explore moreOur Leadership
Learn moreCorporate Governance
Read moreInvestor Relations
Explore moreDE&I Footnotes
- 1 Data as of December 31, 2022.
- 2 4% of global employees have not identified gender and are not included in the data calculations.
- 3 14% of U.S. employees have not identified race/ethnicity and are not included in the data calculations.