Companies still see LGBTQ+ board representation as ‘frivolous,’ according to a corporate advocate

Fortune reports on the work of the Association of LGBTQ+ Corporate Directors and on the attitudes that continue to slow LGBTQ+ representation in the boardroom — among them the view, still voiced by companies, that recruiting openly LGBTQ+ directors is a ‘frivolous’ concern rather than a matter of board quality.

The article sets that resistance against the measured reality of representation: openly LGBTQ+ directors hold only around one per cent of board seats at Fortune 500 and Nasdaq-listed companies, far below the share of US adults who identify as LGBTQ+ in national polling.

It also records the practical obstacles advocates describe — boards that recruit through existing networks, the absence of consistent disclosure, and the assumption that directors would not wish to be identified — and the counter-argument that visibility, not supply, is the binding constraint.