ROGERS -- The face of the America's workforce is becoming increasingly more Hispanic, Robert Rodriguez, founder and president of Chicago-based DRR Advisors, told business leaders Thursday.
"Make no bones about it people, the workforce of the future is going to have an increasing Latino identity," he told about 60 corporate leaders at the National Hispanic Corporate Council's spring summit. The Washington-based nonprofit organization had its conference in Northwest Arkansas this week.
Hispanics account for 16 percent of U.S. employees and will represent more than 40 percent of job growth in the next five years, according to research firm IHS.
About 55 million Hispanics call the U.S. home, accounting for about 17 percent of total population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The bureau projects the Hispanic population will nearly double by 2050.
In Arkansas, Hispanics make up 6.9 percent of the workforce, with some of the highest numbers coming from Benton and Washington counties, where the rate is 16 percent.
The Pew Research Center reports that Hispanics are a much younger population in the state, with a median age of 23. The median age of all Arkansans is 37, according to the Census Bureau.
The age gap is growing between native-born and foreign-born Hispanics living in the state. The median age of native-born Hispanics is 14 years compared to 35 years for foreign-born.
Rodriguez said businesses with rigorous Hispanic-talent management programs are pulling away from those without a strategy. Companies that don't start closing that gap will soon find it is too big to bridge, he said.
Octavio Hinojosa Mier, executive director of the National Hispanic Corporate Council, said eight of 10 new workers by 2020 will be women and minorities.
"We want to help corporate America better understand the Hispanic market," he said.
Rodriguez said some corporate attitudes are changing as leaders gain a more textured understanding and appreciation for Hispanic diversity.
"There is a changing perspective by corporations," he said. "There is a move away from a 'fix them' mentality to a 'fix us' approach," in regards to Hispanics.
He estimated there are between 9 million and 12 million Hispanics nationwide in the upwardly mobile group. Members of that group generally value a college degree, expect to be better off financially than their parents, strive to have a successful career and desire constant professional development.
"They see their 'Latino-ness' as an asset in the workplace," Rodriguez said. "These individuals are very influential and represent the next generation of the Latino workforce."
It is important for younger Hispanics to have business leaders to look up to, he added.
"You can't be what you can't see," Rodriguez said.
Business on 05/22/2015