Des Moines-based Principal Financial Group earned ‘Corporate Equality Index’ score of 100

By Des Moines Sun

Jun 8, 2023

Principal Financial Group, which is based in Des Moines, earned a score of 100 in a ranking that evaluates the corporate non-discrimination policies based on “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.”

A total of one companies in Iowa received a rating of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index. Nationwide, 842 businesses received the maximum score, reflecting the rating’s evaluation that these are among the “best places” for LGBTQ+ members to work.

Principal Financial Group is on the Fortune 1000 list of large U.S. companies.

The CEI rating criteria are based on four categories: nondiscrimination policies, pledges of equal benefits for LGBTQ+ employees and their families, support for an inclusive workplace and “corporate social responsibility.”

Companies might be adhering to CEI policies to please their top shareholders and secure bonuses and board positions for themselves, the New York Post reported. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who has been called “the face” of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG), wrote in a 2018 letter to CEOs titled “A Sense of Purpose” that companies that fail to serve a social purpose “will ultimately lose the license to operate from key stakeholders.”

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, author of “Woke Inc.: Inside America’s Social Justice Scam,” said, “The big fund managers like BlackRock all embrace this ESG orthodoxy in how they apply pressure to top corporate management teams and boards and they determine, in many cases, executive compensation and bonuses and who gets re-elected or re-appointed to boards. They can make it very difficult for you if you don’t abide by their agendas.”

Prioritizing CEI rankings might not always bring the results executives are hoping for, as in the case of Anheuser-Busch’s promotion of Dylan Mulvaney, a 26-year-old TikTok star who transitioned from male to female in 2021 and has since raked in over $1 million in brand endorsements. Bud Light’s and Nike’s ad campaigns featuring Mulvaney drew criticism from stars like Kid Rock, Travis Tritt and Caitlyn Jenner, but Derek Kreifels, the co-founder and CEO of State Financial Officers Foundation, said the backlash may end up being more significant.

In the two weeks after Bud Light’s launch of the Mulvaney ad campaign, Anheuser-Busch’s value decreased by more than $5 billion, the New York Post reported.

The CEI ranking examines business-related activities such as education, training and accountability measures and how inclusive they are.

A total of 1,200 companies, both privately and publicly held, participated in the survey in 2022. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation initiated the survey in 2002.

List of CEI-Rated Companies in Iowa