Dive Brief:
- Advancement of Latino employees often stalls at an organization’s highest levels, according to an April 28 analysis from the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement.
- A lack of representation near the top doesn’t stem from a talent pipeline problem, according to two recent reports from HACE; instead, there’s a “conversion gap” between mid- and senior-level roles.
- “We've spent years building the pipeline,” said Patricia Mota, president and CEO of HACE, in a statement. “What this research makes clear is that the pipeline is not the problem — the transition is. And that is a system design issue, not a talent deficit.”
Dive Insight:
Latino employees represent about 20% of the workforce, according to federal data but only about 5% of executive roles, according to a University of Massachusetts Amherst analysis of census data.
HACE’s research — based on a 2025 survey of 394 Latino professionals, executive interviews and more — pointed to several causes, including insufficient leadership development models. The largest gap happens at the mid-to-senior transition, where expectations become less explicit and advancement pathways less transparent, according to the analysis. At this level, “advancement depends not only on performance, but on access to sponsorship, visibility, and inclusion within decision-making networks,” HACE said.
Employers may miss out on significant market, workforce and economic opportunities if they don’t work to close that gap, the research suggested.
“The organizations that will lead in the next decade will not be those with the broadest pipelines,” Mota said. “They will be the ones that most effectively convert middle-layer capability into recognized executive leadership — and that reflects the markets and communities they serve.”
To do so, HACE recommended employers move beyond work to build diverse pipelines and shift toward intentional sponsorship structures; greater transparency in advancement criteria; leadership development models that reflect real-world decision environments; and systems that actively reinforce visibility, credibility and inclusion at senior levels.
That advice echoes how other workplace experts have suggested HR work to address the “broken rung” for many individuals. Transparency around career pathways is especially crucial, one HR professional previously told HR Dive, as arbitrary metrics can allow people of color to slip through the cracks.
