A lot of research has already been done on the significant contribution of immigrant scientists and engineers to the U.S. innovation system. Less research, however, has been done on the presence of migrant and immigrant leadership in corporate America. While there has been some research done on ethnic minorities’ representation in senior corporate roles in the U.S. — for example the study of the ethnic composition of boards in corporate America by Richie Zweigenhaft — studies of immigrant leadership talent are still scarce. This is despite the fact that many well-known CEOs of American companies are immigrants, such as Elon Musk (Tesla), Sergey Brin (Google), Satya Nadella (Microsoft), and Dara Khosrowshahi (Expedia and Uber).
What the Data Tells Us About Immigrant Executives in the U.S.
Most research has focused on patents and startups, not big companies.
November 29, 2017
jennifer maravillas for hbr
Summary.
A lot of research has already been done on the significant contribution of immigrant scientists and engineers to the U.S. innovation system. Less research, however, has been done on the presence of migrant and immigrant leadership in corporate America. It is important to better understand the contributions immigrants make as leaders in corporate America, as well as the paths they take to get there. New research from INSEAD used name matching techniques to shed light on these questions. The data suggests that a substantial share of ethnic executives in the U.S. have arrived as immigrants.