CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Grant Thornton, one of America’s largest brands of professionals providing end-to-end audit, assurance, tax, and advisory services, has earned a top score of 100% on the 2024 Disability Equality Index® (DEI). A joint initiative of Disability:IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the DEI is widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive assessment tool that helps companies build a roadmap of measurable and tangible actions toward disability inclusion and equality.
Top-scoring businesses on the index — those scoring 80% or higher — were recognized as a “Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion.” This marks the sixth consecutive year Grant Thornton has been named a best place to work for disability inclusion, and it’s the fifth year in a row the firm has earned the highest score possible.
“Diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging are at the core of everything we do at Grant Thornton, and that includes supporting people with visible and non-apparent disabilities,” said Rashada Whitehead, Grant Thornton’s national managing principal of Culture, Immersion & Inclusion. “We’re extremely grateful for the Disability Equality Index’s ongoing recognition; it validates our efforts to empower everyone equally for the benefit of our firm, our clients and our communities.”
Ken Cunningham, Grant Thornton’s chief legal officer, agrees with Whitehead. As the senior executive sponsor of Disability Alliance, the firm’s disability-focused business resource group (BRG), Cunningham emphasizes the importance of ongoing efforts in this area.
“Grant Thornton takes a multi-layered approach to disability inclusion that’s embedded in our firm’s DNA.” said Cunningham. “This award is a testament to the many ways our community takes care of each other, and we will continue to work with organizations like Disability:IN to ensure that all of our professionals can thrive.”
The 2024 DEI measured a range of criteria, including culture and leadership; enterprise-wide access; employment practices including benefits, recruitment, employment, education, retention, advancement and accommodations; community engagement; supplier diversity; and responsible procurement.
About the Disability Equality Index®
The Disability Equality Index has become the leading independent, third-party resource for the annual benchmarking of corporate disability inclusion policies and programs, and is now trusted by more than 70% of the United States Fortune 100 and nearly half of the Fortune 500. Such companies must increasingly consider how emerging global reporting directives and stakeholder expectations surrounding social and corporate governance factors impact their operational, cultural, reputational and financial performance.
The Disability Equality Index is an objective, reflective, forward-thinking, and confidential disability rating tool designed to assist business in advancing inclusion practices. It is a comprehensive benchmark that helps companies build a roadmap of measurable, tangible actions across five scored categories: Culture & Leadership, Enterprise-Wide Access, Employment Practices, Community Engagement, and Supplier Diversity. Participating companies receive a score, on a scale of zero (0) to 100, with those scoring 80 or higher earning the distinction of “Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion” for the benchmark year.
Findings from a two-year Global Disability Equality Index pilot informed the launch of a scored benchmark that opened in 2024 to seven new countries in addition to the United States. These include: Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Japan, the Philippines, and the United Kingdom. Now in its 10th year, the Disability Equality Index has grown nearly 7x since 2015, expanding from 80 companies in its first year to 542 in 2024. Collectively, the 2024 edition received 753 submissions spanning the eight benchmarked countries.
About Grant Thornton
“Grant Thornton” is the brand for two professional-services entities: Grant Thornton LLP, a licensed, certified public accounting (CPA) firm that provides audit and assurance services ― and Grant Thornton Advisors LLC (not a licensed CPA firm), which exclusively provides non-attest offerings, including tax and advisory services. With revenues of $2.4 billion for the fiscal year that ended July 31, 2023, and dozens of offices nationwide, Grant Thornton represents a community of almost 10,000 problem solvers, relationship builders, and industry specialists who know that how we serve matters as much as what we do.
Grant Thornton LLP, Grant Thornton Advisors LLC and their respective subsidiaries operate as an alternative practice structure (APS). The APS conforms with applicable laws, regulations and professional standards, including those from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Grant Thornton LLP and Grant Thornton Advisors LLC serve as the U.S. member firms of the Grant Thornton International Ltd (GTIL) network. GTIL and its member firms are not a worldwide partnership and all member firms are separate legal entities. Member firms deliver all services; GTIL does not provide services to clients.
