Microsoft tops the list of most transparent companies for diversity data. Here's how far the top 5 have come - and how they can still improve.

• Fortune and research firm Refinitiv assessed Fortune 500 companies on their diversity data.
• Companies were rated on 14 metrics, such as the percent of women in management positions.
• Microsoft, Target, and Gap ranked in the top five companies.

Over the past year, business leaders have become more vocal about societal issues. In fact, it's hard to count the number of CEOs who are speaking out about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) right now.

But which companies are actually following through with their DEI promises? Fortune and research firm Refinitiv examined Fortune's 500 biggest companies in the US, gathering data on each company's diversity statistics.

They ranked the companies based on 14 equally weighted metrics that measured how much diversity data the company shares including the percentage of people of color on a company's board, the percentage of women employees, the percentage of women managers, among others. Each diversity data figure was worth one point, and the companies were then ranked based on their score. Companies that disclosed the most data came highest on the list, like Microsoft. Other companies that came in the top 20 include Intel, Verizon, and Allstate.

At a time when employees, customers, and investors are demanding that corporations address diversity, the list helps identify companies that are ahead of the pack. Nearly 70% of companies in the Russell 1000 release no data on the racial and ethnic makeup of their workforce, per Just Capital.

Jasmine Hill, founder of DEI consultancy Radiant Slate, said that surveys like these help encourage companies to be more transparent in their workforce data and to keep up with their competitors.

"Sharing diversity data on a company's workforce is essential for starting the conversation," Hill told Insider. "However, actively using the data to improve the working environment of marginalized groups is far more important."

Diversifying the workplace is not just about collecting data, it's about addressing gaps in representation and fostering a sense of inclusion among your workers at the same time.

"Diversity is about who's in the room, but it's time to start moving towards inclusion."

5. Biogen

Biogen has approximately 7,800 employees.      Reuters

The biotech company publishes extensive data on its workforce diversity. Some 51% of the company's management team are women, and 30% are people of color, per 2020 data.

The company has been recognized as one of the top places to work for people with disabilities, ranking No. 1 in the 2019 Disability Equality Index by the advocacy group DisabilityIn. 3.3% Biogen workers self-identify as having a disability. The company's end-of-year goal is to increase the number of veterans, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ folks in their US ranks by 30%.

4. Gap

Gap has over 135,000 employees.      REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

The clothing retailer ranks among the top companies for gender diversity — 58% of executives at the VP level and above are women.

About 55% of the retailer's workforce are people of color, and 30% of its store managers are people of color, per company data.

The company was featured as a 2020 top employer according to the Human Rights Campaigm, which rates workplaces on LGBTQ equality.

3. Target

Target employs over 360,000 people.      Christian Science Monitor / Contributor / Getty Images

Target's 2019 diversity data shows that 50% of its workforce are people of color, and about 40% of store managers are people of color. When it comes to its board, 54% of its members are white, 31% are Latino, and 15% are Black. At all levels, the percentage of workers who are women is about 50%.

The retailer said its goals are to hire, retain, and promote more people of color and women, though it did not list on its website how much.

2. Centene

Centene has over 56,600 employees.      Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

At the healthcare insurer, women represent 75% of all employees, with 64% in supervisory positions and 55% at the director level and above. Some 50% of the company's workforce identifies as people of color, including 36% at levels of supervisor and above, per 2020 data.

1. Microsoft

Microsoft has over 166,475 workers.      Courtesy of Comparably

The tech giant had the most complete diversity and inclusion numbers of the companies Fortune and Refinitiv analyzed.

Per data from 2020, 47% of its workforce are people of color, but the majority of managers are white. Only 29% of its employees are women and about 26% of its managers are women. In its 2020 report, Microsoft included employees with disabilities for the first time — 6.1% of workers there self-identify as having a disability.