It’s encouraging that boards are increasingly focusing on gender, ethnicity, and diversity, but many are still struggling to achieve their full potential. Boards that make use of the recruitment of diverse directors to “check boxes” may end up with a board that is diverse in demographics but lacking in cognitive diversity, which can decrease the effectiveness of boards.
When diversity is introduced to the board in the right method, the results could be transformative. For instance, when women are on the board and their perspectives on issues like merchandising or marketing are brought to bear in deliberations and the result is an improved understanding of customers and their needs that is likely to boost profits and sales.
The benefits of diversity also be extended to the company’s external environment. A board with a diverse population can be more sensitive to issues like workplace bias and sexual harassment and better equipped to anticipate changes in employee attitudes about equal pay and corporate practices.
If a board is looking to take its diversity initiatives to the next level, a great first step is considering what it should look like in the coming years and how it will find and recruit candidates with the necessary qualifications, experience, and contacts to make the change. To achieve this, the board might conduct a self-assessment to determine its current composition. It can also utilize tools like Michigan Nonprofit Association’s diversity tool to encourage open dialogue between board members and other key stakeholders on what it looks for in terms diversity.
