MMAC is committed to work with its members to help close racial disparities and move Metro Milwaukee forward as a region of choice for all.
At its 158th All Member Meeting in September 2019, MMAC announced the first round of commitments to a new initiative: Making Milwaukee a Region of Choice. An initial group of 64 employers representing 128,000 Metro Milwaukee employees signed a pledge of commitment to diversify their overall employment and management, and share best practices to make workplaces more inclusive.
As of December 2020, we have received commitments from a total of: 110 employers representing 140,000+ employees in our region. Looking to join this effort? It's open to all MMAC members. or fill out this pledge form and return it by email to:
MMAC - Region of Choice Pledge 275 W Wisconsin Ave., Ste. 220 | Milwaukee, WI 53203 Region of Choice: Details With the goal of making Milwaukee’s workplaces and community more welcoming, companies taking the pledge are committing to increase the number of African-American and Hispanic/Latino employees in Metro Milwaukee by 15%, and the number of African-American and Hispanic/Latino managers in Metro Milwaukee by 25%, by 2025. MMAC will use 2019 data from employers to set a baseline, then will report aggregate data on an annual basis to track progress. >> View January 2021 press release announcing next steps in Region of Choice initiative
>> View initial MMAC press release announcing Region of Choice Region of Choice: Project background and research
Read the full report >> A 2018 survey of the MMAC’s Board members and CEOs of its member companies identified racial disparities as the biggest challenge facing the Milwaukee Region. Based on that feedback, MMAC formed a taskforce to conduct comprehensive research on the challenges and opportunities that diverse management employees face in Metro Milwaukee through a survey, focus groups and listening sessions. MMAC compared metro Milwaukee to 20 peer regions on seven measures of prosperity across White, African American and Hispanic populations based on seven indicators, including:
1. Managers & officials 2. Management, business, science, art occupations 3. Unemployment 4. Bachelor’s degree of higher 5. Singe, female-headed households with children 6. Owner-occupied housing 7. Poverty rate "We will never reach our full potential unless Milwaukee can become a Region of Choice for all – a place where anyone from any background would want to live and work. When Milwaukee’s companies and community make an intentional effort to ensure that their doors are open to everyone, we will see more of our young people want to build a career here and more talented employees who want to move here.” - MMAC Chair Jonas Prising Chairman/CEO, ManpowerGroup |
FUEL Milwaukee presents:
RACE BRIDGE Live discussions for racial equity These 60-minute conversations are intended to help Milwaukeeans better understand the nuances of and speak openly about racism. LEARN MORE >> WATCH PREVIOUS EPISODES >> Relevant reads & resources
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Wauwatosa pledges to increase diverse employment by 15% by 2025. Here's how the city plans to do it.
Milwaukee Business Journal - MMAC expands push for business to address Milwaukee area's 'prosperity gap'
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Milwaukee needs around 150 more managers who are African American to meet MMAC goals
Milwaukee Business Journal - MMAC making progress on region of choice initiative to increase Black, Hispanic representation: ManpowerGroup's Prising
Center for Talent Innovation: Being Black in Corporate America
Milwaukee Commerce magazine - How do we make Milwaukee a Region of Choice?
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Region of Choice: How does Milwaukee compare nationally?
Region of Choice: Key research takeaways
More 1,100 respondents to a survey said:
- 60% believe that diversity and inclusion efforts at their company are focused on meeting compliance goals, not on improving company culture.
- 62% of African-American managers feel they have limited exposure to opportunities.
- 56% of Hispanic/Latino managers feel they are overlooked or ignored.
- 43% of diverse managers felt discrimination or bias in their workplace.
- Outside of their workplace, 64% felt discrimination in the community.
Region of Choice: Next Steps
All metro area companies are encouraged to sign the pledge and commit to making Milwaukee a Region of Choice for diverse talent.
Stay tuned for updates and more information.