The tech industry has historically struggled with diversity and inclusion, and while many founders acknowledge its importance, few have taken proactive steps to reduce bias and improve diversity in the workplace.

According to their own diversity reports, 70% of Google’s staff are male, as well as 84% of Facebook’s tech team, while Twitter’s leadership is 72% white and 28% Asian.

In a new study conducted by Lawless Research on behalf of Techstars and Chase for Business, 72% of tech founders believe building a diverse workforce is very important, and 81% acknowledge that a diverse workforce enhances creativity and innovation. The same study, however, found that only 12% employ five or more employees from diverse or underrepresented backgrounds. The study also notes that while 92% of founders are at least familiar with the term “unconscious bias,” only 45% have taken steps to combat it.

The study gathered responses from 680 tech founders and executives from companies established within the past seven years. While some major companies like Intel, Google, and Pinterest are taking proactive steps to improve the diversity of their workforce, the study concludes that early stage companies, particularly those founded in the past two years, are most likely to have no women or minorities in tech positions.

[Screenshot: Lawless Research]

Those who champion diverse workforce initiatives, however, have a proven advantage. A 2015 study by McKinsey and Company found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity were 15% more likely to outperform their competitors, while those in the top quartile for ethnic diversity were 35% more likely to see financial performances above the national industry median.

Other studies have found that companies run by women achieve 35% higher returns on investment, and a recent report by Intel found that a diverse workforce increases revenues, profits, and market value.

“In this report, it said that improving ethnic and gender diversity in the U.S. technology workforce could create between $470 billion and $570 billion in new value to the industry, and could add as much as 1.2 to 1.6 percentage points to the national GDP,” Danielle Brown, Intel’s ‎chief diversity and inclusion officer, told Fast Company.