German software giant SAP will roll back several of its diversity and inclusion measures to comply with the Trump administration, a spokesperson confirmed to AFP on Sunday, in response to a press report.
An internal email seen by the Handelsblatt newspaper revealed that SAP will drop its target of having 40% female employees.
In the United States, where SAP employs 17,000 people, accounting for 16% of its global workforce and generating nearly a third of its 2024 revenue, female leadership quotas will no longer be applied. Additionally, the Walldorf-based company will no longer consider gender diversity as a factor for executive compensation.
SAP’s diversity and inclusion department will lose its independence as it merges with another department.
In a statement released on Friday, the DAX-listed group at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange expressed its commitment to creating an inclusive workplace while fully complying with the legal requirements in each country it operates.
On his first day back in the White House, Donald Trump signed an executive order making diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs promoting equal opportunities illegal. He threatens to prosecute both American and foreign companies that continue to implement these programs. The German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) reported that multiple German companies have received letters from the US embassy regarding this issue.
Since this announcement, SAP is one of the first major German companies to openly reverse its inclusivity policy.
In April, T-Mobile, the US subsidiary of mobile operator Deutsche Telekom, also committed to largely abandoning its DEI measures.
