Newly inaugurated President Donald Trump signed executive orders on Monday rolling back numerous diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programmes as well as protections for transgender individuals within the federal government.

He said that the widely anticipated move aims at halting what he described as efforts to “socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life”.

The orders include the repeal of 78 executive actions signed by Joe Biden during his presidency, several of which were specifically aimed at advancing racial equity and combating discrimination against gay and transgender individuals. Among these were two measures signed by Biden on his first day in office, one focusing on promoting racial equity for underserved communities and another prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.

Trump also repealed several executive orders that targeted systemic discrimination and were intended to provide support to Black, Hispanic, Native American, Asian American, and Pacific Islander communities.

Businesses, including Walmart, McDonalds, and Meta, have already rolled back their diversity policies since the 2024 election.

Ripples Across the Pond

Charlie O’Brien, Head of People at Breathe HR, the HR software for British SMEs commented, “British business leaders should be aware of, but not influenced by, the decision of US employers like Amazon and Meta to scale back their DE&I initiatives ahead of Trump’s inauguration. My hope is that UK employers will understand that the actions of their US cousins are shortsighted, driven by the president-elect’s anti-DEI rhetoric as opposed to sound business logic.

“There is so much evidence in favour of promoting DE&I in the workplace. Research shows that cognitively diverse teams solve problems faster and companies with greater gender and ethnic diversity are more profitable than their less diverse counterparts. Plus, DE&I schemes can help to prevent discrimination: a commitment which British employers have an obligation to uphold. The pursuit of diversity, equity and inclusion must remain a priority for UK businesses, regardless of the myopic actions of high-profile corporations across the pond.”

Khyati Sundaram, CEO of ethical AI hiring experts Applied commented, “Whether or not changes to the legal landscape carry across the pond remains to be seen. But DEI efforts closer to home are becoming buried in similar sentiment regardless. This is revealing a bigger problem.

“When minority workers fear being seen as a ‘token hire’ or ‘lawsuit risk’, it’s a clear sign that DEI schemes themselves are broken. The aim should be to create equal opportunities for all workers to succeed. Both US and UK companies must focus on this now more than ever, starting by silencing biases which prevent hiring teams from assessing job candidates objectively. Those who do will see diversity follow organically.”

‘A Period of Soul Searching’

Matt Dean, Founder of work culture and behaviour specialists Byrne Dean, said that it’s important to remember that there is “a different direction of travel legislatively”, both in the UK and the EU.

“The Labour Government in the UK has already presided over the introduction of a proactive duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. It’s planning to continue running counter to the DEI rollback in its Employment Rights Bill. Labour made manifesto commitments that will extend DEI protections. Its plans to protect workers from harassment by third parties is a case in point,” he said.

Firms in the UK are already facing a dilemma as to how to respond to the reported US rollback from DEI.

“Many of their employees will be seeing what Musk, Zuckerburg and Trump are saying, hearing it from UK politicians and media figures too, and wondering about the panoply of DEI statements that their employers have made in recent years,” Dean added.

“We predict a period of soul searching by UK firms. And we suggest that the role of HR leaders here is central. The truth is that there is a solid body of evidence to support the key principles of DEI as being enablers of business. That, and how to package (or rebrand) this truth needs to be at the centre of boardroom discussions in the coming months. The arguments in favour of DEI and the articulation of this message is what has been missing in the debate.”

‘Rebrand, Not Abandonment’

Dean expects that despite “widespread rebranding”, the core principles of DEI – ensuring respect and fairness for everyone in your workplace irrespective of their background – are likely to continue, although under intense pressure.

“Our sense that what we will see will be a rebrand, not an abandonment, is supported by close analysis of recent announcements from the US. Zuckerburg was clear: he still believes in inclusive workplaces. Meta’s statement said they ‘will no longer have a team focused on DEI’, but they pledged to continue to have ‘the best teams with the most talented people’; their former Head of DEI, Maxine Williams, is now in charge of Accessibility and Engagement. That’s what DEI is at its core.”

He added, “Both firms (and those in the UK too) will be finding ways to get the best people, from a diversity of backgrounds, which requires them to broaden their searches to include all applicant pools, but they want to do it in a way that does not expose them to risk. And they have to keep the legal and regulatory landscape in mind when assessing what those risks are.”

Other Policy Shifts

Jason Byrne, CEO of Sullivan & Stanley, says that the key challenge facing UK businesses under a second Trump presidency isn’t any single policy shift, but rather navigating “heightened global unpredictability”.

“It’s clear how US presidential decisions – whether on trade tariffs, climate agreements or international relations – create ripple effects impacting organisations worldwide. A shift to the political right under Trump heightens this volatility in the near term,” he said.

“This unpredictability demands organisations build adaptability into their strategic plans. Leaders need to assess their strategic vulnerabilities and opportunities – from shifts in trade dynamics to potential energy policy reversals. The organisations that thrive will be those with resilient, flexible operations that can pivot quickly.

“We’re already seeing forward-thinking clients increasing investment in agile ways of working, to increase their resilience and close the strategy to execution gap. Focusing on outcomes with missions to achieve them, rather than assuming particular solutions, creates agility to get to the intended value faster. This then is less about predicting specific policy outcomes and more about developing the organisational muscle required to respond swiftly to whatever changes emerge.”