In KPMG’s “What to know about civil rights audits” (p. 11), WilmerHale’s Ronald Machen, partner and co-chair of the White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice, and lead author of How to Advance Corporate Diversity in Compliance with the Law, explains the difference between a racial equity audit and a civil rights audit (as well as the term “audit” in this context), in addition to the audit’s purpose, process pointers, and scoping considerations. He notes both potential upsides (e.g., control of timing and scope) and downsides (e.g., stakeholder dissatisfaction with the company’s chosen scope after the fact) of voluntarily undertaking such an audit, as well as the value of conducting an audit in a manner that ensures privilege.
See last week’s report: Racial Equity/Civil Rights Audits: Overview” and additional information & resources on our Racial Equality & Diversity page.
This post first appeared in the weekly Society Alert!