Nearly 50 years after the Civil Rights Movement, there is a new crisis of opportunity in corporate America. Based on the author's groundbreaking study of Fortune 100 companies, The Diversity Indexidentifies a barrier that has formed as white women have outpaced people of color and, along with white male executives, have wound up creating a persistent racial ceiling. In addition, the quest for global profits has created worldwide competition for the corporate suite, and U. S. -born minorities and whites are losing out. This isn't only a civil rights issue, as studies have shown that businesses with a strong commitment to diversity outperform their peers. The book takes an in-depth look at companies that have struggled to find the perfect leadership mix. Detailing the stories of executives of GeneralElectric, Hewlett Packard, Merck, and PepsiCo, The Diversity Indexdistills - into 10 clear steps - the methods that the most successful companies used to develop integration, keep it growing, and empower their employees to develop new products and markets.