This report provides an overview of how standardized tests are used as part of a broader selection system for each of the services at different points in an officer's career, and a discussion of key issues that should be considered when using standardized tests, including the relationship between tests and racial and ethnic group differences, which could affect minority representation within the officer corps.

The relative lack of minorities in certain military career fields has a significant impact on the diversity of the senior leadership. The relationship between career field choice, race/ethnicity, and membership in the senior officer corps appears to stem, at least in part, from racial and ethnic differences in the occupational preferences of officer cadets. The authors urge a full-scale study to learn the reasons behind these preferences.

Discusses initial steps that the Department of Defense (DoD) should take in developing a department-wide strategic plan to achieve greater diversity within its active duty and civilian leadership. Key questions include how diversity will be defined, how progress toward diversity will be measured, and how DoD leaders will hold themselves and others accountable for such progress. Includes a summary of findings from the 2007 DoD Diversity Summit.

This book develops a fact-based approach to modeling diversity management in U.S. corporations, analyzes the strategies pursued by 14 large U.S. companies recognized for their diversity or human resource achievements, and compares a number of company characteristics. Firms recognized for diversity are distinguished by a core set of motives and practices, but best practices per se may not enable a company to achieve a high level of diversity.It develops a fact-based approach to diversity management in U.S. corporations and uses it to compare corporate practices.