Avanade - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

Avanade is High Risk.

Avanade Inc. is High Risk. The company yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. The company embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from b0usiness goals to partisan policies and divisive issues. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	Medium Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	High Risk
Funding	High Risk
Political Actions	High Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Avanade received a score of 90 on the 2025 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. The company recruits employees based on sexual identity issues. The company discriminates against vendors that do not promote divisive sex and gender policies, indicating it prioritizes sexual issues over merit (1)(2). The company integrates ESG into its business practices. From its Code of Business Ethics: “We are committed to a sustainable procurement program in which we consider a supplier’s environmental, ethical and diversity performance when we decide to award work” (3). However, Avanade has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (4).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Avanade likely uses Benevity as its charitable giving platform. Benevity charities according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hate List, which includes mainstream libertarian, conservative, family, and religious advocacy organizations (1)(2)(3)(4).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Avanade’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company forces employees to attend multiple, controversial trainings on gender identity, sexual orientation, transgender issues, and divisive racial ideology. The company provides a specific benefits guide with a comprehensive explanation of transgender services funded by the company (1)(2). The company’s former CEO Pamela Maynard signed Catalyst’s Champions for Change pledge, indicating its support of DEI in its leadership composition through the establishment of gender and racial targets (3)(4). Avanade requires its hiring managers and interviewers to take unconscious bias training (5). The company appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its business structure through the establishment of gender targets for its hiring. The company is seeking : “to reach 50/50 gender parity through recruitment and development programs” (6). However, in 2026, the company removed gender targets from its Inclusion and Diversity webpage. To date, the company has not publicly addressed this change, leaving shareholders without clarity regarding the company’s reasoning or future direction (7). Avanade does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (8).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Avanade’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company agrees to allow a controversial stakeholder group focused on sexual identity issues to dictate marketing or advertising strategy. By doing so, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). The company opposed various state and local legislation intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces (3)(4). Avanade was committed to net zero emissions by 2025 (5). The company supports DEI within its business practices, employing a Global Chief Inclusion and Talent Officer (6). Avanade supports DEI within its business practices. From its DEI webpage: “We’re taking a holistic approach to inclusion, diversity and equity at Avanade. Through our inclusion, diversity and well-being commitments, we’re setting actionable goals to drive meaningful change” (7). The company supports ESG within its business practices. From its 2023 ESG Report: “Steps we’re taking to advance our responsible business practices in 2024: Establishing an ESG Council led by Innes Grant, our ESG and Responsible Business lead, to ingrain responsible business initiatives within our communications, policies and operations” (8).

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Avanade’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company covers transgender related costs for its employees and their children, including paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. Additionally, the company has pledged philanthropic support of at least one organization or event that promotes sex and gender ideology. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2)(3). Avanade was a Brass sponsor of Out & Equal (4). The company partnered with the European Network Against Racism (5)(6). It also partnered with Stonewall, a UK-based LGBTQ rights charity, and myGwork, an LGBTQ talent and hiring network (7)(8)(9). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of Avanade using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (10).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Avanade’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company publicly advocated for controversial sex and gender ideology through local, state or federal legislation or initiatives. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). The company does not operate a PAC or engage in lobbying at this time (3)(4)(5).