Companies that kept DEI commitments saw higher reputation scores in 2025
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Companies that maintained their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion saw reputation scores rise in this year's Axios Harris Poll 100 reputation rankings.
Why it matters: Unclear corporate values or a lack of conviction — most recently seen through mass DEI walk-backs — can hinder reputation.
By the numbers: Across all 100 companies, corporate reputation declined by an average of 2.34 points in 2025.
- However, those companies that held firm on their DEI commitments saw scores rise by an average of 1.5 points.
The big picture: Several companies have scaled back their DEI benchmarking goals amid concerns of legal exposure after the Trump administration's calls to dismantle DEI programs within corporate America.
- Yes, but: According to a recent Pew Research study, a slim majority of U.S. workers say increasing DEI at work is mainly a good thing.
Zoom in: Reputation scores are tabulated based on trust, culture, ethics, citizenship, vision, growth, and products and services.
- Patagonia and Costco rank within the top three in character, culture and citizenship.
- Microsoft, which saw one of the largest score increases since last year, ranked "excellent" across the categories of trust, culture and vision, among others.
Meanwhile, most companies that saw a decline in reputation in the past year also rolled back or revised their DEI policies.
- AB InBev — which ranked "poor" across the reputation categories of ethics, citizenship and character — has seen its reputation decline more than 10 points since 2021.
- The Walt Disney Company has seen a 7-point slide since 2021, and Target's score declined by 5 points. Both fall in the bottom 25% in terms of ethics.
Of note, Google revised its DEI policies but still saw a significant increase in score (+2.3 points) due to its "excellent" score for products and services and "very good" ranking for trajectory, vision and growth.
What to watch: Walmart, Target, Home Depot and Constellation Brands are warning investors about potential customer backlash following changes to DEI programs, according to a CNN report.
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