Facebook is aiming to have 30% more Black people in leadership positions within the next 5 years

• Facebook is looking to increase the number of Black people and other people of color in leadership positions by 30% over the next five years, COO Sheryl Sandberg wrote in a blog post Thursday.
• Sandberg said Facebook wants to double the number of Black and Latinx employees in its workforce, a goal it previously set in 2019 when it published its diversity report.
• Facebook is also aiming to boost women's representation in top jobs, Sandberg said.
• The announcement, which included a pledge to invest $100 million in Black-owned businesses this year, comes as Facebook faces pressure internally and externally to do more to combat systemic racism.

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said in a blog post Thursday that the company is aiming to boost the number of Black people and other people of color in leadership positions by 30% within the next five years.

"We know that more diverse teams will make better decisions and build better products. We're invested in increasing diversity and inclusion because we care about doing better at serving diverse communities all around the world," Sandberg wrote.

Facebook is also looking to build off its previous diversity goals by doubling the number of Black and Latinx employees in its workforce over that same time period, Sandberg said.

In 2019, when Facebook released its sixth-annual diversity report showing only modest gains in the number of employees from "traditionally underrepresented groups," it pledged to "double our number of women globally and Black and Hispanic employees in the US."

In Thursday's announcement, Facebook expanded on that commitment by aiming to double the number of Black and Latinx employees globally by 2025.

Facebook is also aiming to have 50% of its workforce come from "underrepresented communities," which it previously defined in its diversity report as "women, people who are Black, Hispanic, Native American, Pacific Islanders, people with two or more ethnicities, people with disabilities, and veterans."

Sandberg wrote in her blog post that the company "will also continue our ongoing efforts to increase the representation of women in leadership."

Facebook also committed to investing $100 million this year with Black-owned businesses and spending $100 million per year with Black-owned suppliers starting in 2021.

The announcement comes weeks after George Floyd died in police custody, sparking nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism and leading workers at major tech companies to call on their employers to do more to address racial inequality.

Facebook is also facing pushback from employees, civil rights groups, lawmakers, and other critics who say the company isn't doing enough to stop the spread of racism and violent content on its platform.