Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council – The council consists of nine Duke Realty associates whose mission is to educate, increase awareness and advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion within Duke Realty and the communities we serve. Members of the council organize an annual diversity speaker event and, along with an Executive Committee member, select the recipient of the CEO Award for Diversity and Inclusion. This award is given to acknowledge a market’s efforts and accomplishments in diversity and inclusion for the year.

Duke Realty Women’s Network – The Women’s Network, which is open to men and women alike, takes a multi-pronged approach to engaging associates and sharing information. The mission is to create a network that supports the investment in, development of, and growth of women at Duke Realty. Launched in December 2017, the network hosts a formal meeting each quarter with featured speakers addressing topics related to career advancement and personal development.

VIP (Value in People) Program – Implemented in 2014 to set standards to ensure we have a diverse candidate slate for all open positions before a hiring decision is made, this program also ensures that we have female candidates for select positions (construction and leasing) where females are underrepresented. It continues to improve our hiring percentage of women and minorities in key positions.

The Executive Mentoring program – Launched in 2016 by the Executive Team, this program takes responsibility for the development and advancement of women and minority associates at the highest level of the company.

Diversifying the Industry – At Duke Realty, we partner with several organizations to introduce young students and professionals to the real estate industry. Project REAP (Real Estate Associate Program) and DREAM Scholarship are two examples of promoting diversity and inclusion in the industry. Project REAP is a 10-week program that bridges the gap between talented minority professionals and commercial real estate companies looking for talent. Duke Realty partners with Roosevelt University’s Marshall Bennett Institute of Real Estate in Chicago to offer mentoring, internship opportunities, and the DREAM Scholarship, which is designed to help students to complete their degrees.

Transparency – Duke Realty is committed to increasing transparency so we are disclosing our 2020 EEO-1 consolidated report.  This federally mandated report provides a snapshot of Duke Realty’s workforce demographics as of October 2020, based on standardized race/ethnicity, gender and job categories prescribed by the federal government through the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Duke Realty’s Supplier Diversity program started in 2004 with a goal of increasing awareness and improving our utilization of small, minority and women-owned businesses.

Each market is tasked with the goal to research, interview, and hire more minority, women-owned, and veteran (M/W/V) businesses. The goal is to utilize these companies in all aspects of our business, in particular during the construction of our projects.

For construction projects, we increased our diverse spend (M/W/V) to 9% (up from 6% two years ago) with the majority being minority-owned businesses.
Our commitment to Supplier Diversity has increased the pool for good ideas and high-quality goods and services while enhancing economic opportunity for our projects.

Find out more about our Supplier Diversity program.

Duke Realty partnered with the City of Perris, California, to provide $1 million to pay for up to 150 Perris residents to earn their bachelor’s degree. Students will earn their degree by taking courses online and/or attending Thomas Edison State College.

Volunteering in the communities where we live and work is part of Duke Realty’s DNA. Our associates utilize their company-paid Community Service days and serve their local markets by getting involved with various non-profit organizations.

In 2019, our associates donated over 8,400 hours of volunteer time. Through their sweat equity, they paint, landscape, pack food, organize, build, clean, and take on any job necessary to help organizations move their initiatives forward.

By being part of our local communities, Duke Realty continues to be a good neighbor through our Community Service connections.

Read more about our involvement in the community.