What is the Average Chief Diversity Officer Salary?
According to estimates from Glassdoor, the chief diversity officer salary range in the US is $82,000 to $412,000. According to the data on salaries from Zippia, the national average salary for a chief diversity officer is $95,991 in 2022. The salary estimates vary depending on several factors, such as experience, education, location, and industry.
Location impacts how much a chief diversity officer can expect to make. Chief diversity officers make the most in New Jersey, Nevada, California, New York, and Maryland.
Let’s get started.
Average Chief Diversity Officer Salary
The chief diversity officer position is a full-time job in most organizations and a hybrid role in some remote-based companies. In any case, CDO jobs tend to differ per the company and industry.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average chief diversity officer makes around $154,526 in the United States. The highest annual average salary for a chief diversity officer is in the coal mining industry, followed by transportation, manufacturing, and employment services.
According to anonymous individual salary reports, it’s best to look at a few other sources to understand how much a CDO makes.
Glassdoor
Glassdoor is a well-known website where you can discover salary reviews and estimates. Employees can upload direct, anonymous annual salary reports, comment about their employers, and enter perks and benefits information, cost of living details, and total compensation figures.
As per Glassdoor, the average salary for the Chief Diversity Officer is $137,725. Additionally, the average salary range is between $82,000 and $412,000.
Furthermore, Glassdoor allows you to check different salary estimates by adding specific filters. You can make a more exact search by adding the following filters:
- Choose the industry you are in or that you would like to enter
- Enter the calculated size of the company according to the total number of employees
- Enter the annual experience for the position
Adding the filters mentioned above will refine your search and better estimate the chief diversity officer’s salary according to your needs. Authorities calculate the salary reports by adding up the information entered by people. However, some employers and companies also include their salaries at times.
You can find the total estimated salaries of related jobs. In any case, you can get the best estimates of the chief diversity officer’s salary by using various filters on Glassdoor.
Indeed
Indeed is one of the most esteemed job-search engines used by millions of individuals in the US alone. However, it is also a great place to find reasonable salary estimations based on the thousands of positions posted on the website.
The average compensation for a chief diversity officer in the United States is $101,825. The site also showcases the standard benefits companies offer to CDOs. Chief diversity officers’ benefits include referral programs, health insurance, disability insurance, and 401k.
Indeed also shows you which cities offer the most salaries to CDOs. The highest-paying cities include Queens, Washington, DC, and New York.
Lastly, you can also create new job alerts based on specific salaries. Therefore, you will only get job alerts for chief diversity officer jobs with one particular salary or more.
PayScale
PayScale is a dedicated website for finding out estimates, salary data, total compensation, and specific benefits. The site also offers cost of living details, gender-based pay, and other monetary information.
As per PayScale, the average salary for a chief diversity officer in the US is $128,854. However, the average pay range for CDOs is between $76,000 and $219,000.
PayScale also showcases what states offer the most impressive chief diversity officer salaries. For example, you can earn the most in New York and California as a dedicated professional.
Career Outlook for a Chief Diversity Officer
After gaining a significant amount of professional experience and creating an expansive portfolio, a CDO moves to the C-suite and can become a vice president. The compensation for these positions depends on the industry, location, and the number of responsibilities in the job description.
After becoming a well-versed professional officer, an individual can advance from deputy chief to a chief diversity officer and then to VP based on their experience in the field.
The average compensations for Vice President positions (as per Zippia in August 2022) are given below:
Consultant
A consultant handles independent tasks and ensures the quality of more important documentation. The higher end of total annual pay for a consultant is $107,000. The job role requires around four years of professional experience.
Vice President
The vice president role requires solid communication skills and adequate leadership capabilities. It involves handling major cross-department collaboration and leading many teams, so the role requires more than a decade of experience. The position comes with a significant amount of responsibilities and receives an average annual pay of $158,637.
Vice presidents on the lower tier of that ladder, the bottom ten percent to be exact, make around $107,000 per annum, while the top ten percent makes $235,000.
Location impacts how much a vice president can expect to make. VPs make the most in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Washington, and Virginia.
Senior Vice President
This role is the most senior role for the chief diversity officer within an organization. The VP has to make critical decisions for the entire department, such as hiring, training, and so on. Since it is on the higher end of the career ladder, the average total compensation of this job is $194,770 annually and requires more than ten years of professional experience.
Senior vice presidents on the lower tier of the spectrum, the bottom ten percent to be exact, make around $125,000 per year, while the top ten percent makes $302,000.
Location impacts how much a senior vice president can expect to make. Senior vice presidents make the most in Washington, Rhode Island, Nevada, Nebraska, and Alaska.
Top Paying Cities for Chief Diversity Officers
As per Indeed, the cities with the top-paying chief diversity officer positions, categorized by location in the US, are given below.
New York, NY
$118,069 per year
Washington, DC
$117,994 per year
Queens
$106,870 per year
Columbus, OH
$101,938 per year
Education Level for Chief Diversity Officer Role
A chief diversity officer needs to have a firm knowledge base and solid communication skills. While individuals can build these abilities professionally, academic programs and certifications can help streamline the process. Additionally, they would be helpful in the CDO receiving better pay.
While a bachelor’s of at least a four-year degree in a field such as business, law, psychology, sociology, philosophy, human resources, or criminal justice can help any aspiring CDO out, a Master’s in the related field helps add credibility to the individual’s knowledge for a chief diversity officer role. Additionally, a Master’s coupled with a solid portfolio can help one directly get a VP role with an impressive total compensation.
The employment of chief diversity officers is expected to grow at an average rate over the next decade.
Organizations will continue to hire chief diversity officers to ensure compliance with federal and state laws regarding equal employment opportunities and to improve their appeal to a diverse customer base. Organizations also will need to hire these workers to ensure that their policies and practices are inclusive and non-discriminatory.
The right certifications significantly uplift a chief diversity officer’s resume. Some prominent ones are mentioned below:
HR University: They offer a top-quality diversity and inclusion certification that helps you boost your skills and train for a better career.
Stanford: The university offers a professional diversity and inclusion certification
George Mason University: They offer a host of diversity and inclusion certifications, and each focuses on different expertise.
Chief Diversity Officer Salary Across Top Companies
As per Glassdoor, here is what the annual average chief diversity officer salary looks like in some of the top firms across different industries.
- Google: $175,2110
- Amazon: $229,800
- Oracle: $236,116
- Cisco Systems: $238,801
Ending Note
The chief diversity officer’s salary primarily depends on your organization and industry. However, your educational background and experience are equally important.
In any case, you should focus on developing an excellent portfolio to negotiate for a better salary.
Becoming an excellent diversity officer requires time, effort, and constant reading. Additionally, it’s best to keep up to date with your industry’s latest news and updates.
If you are new to the career of diversity and inclusion, we recommend taking our Diversity and Inclusion Certification Course. You will understand the basics of being a good communicator, how to conquer diversity officer interviews, and how to stand out as a worthy candidate.
