“The Diversity Dilemma …It Begins With A Diverse Approach To The Challenge”Diversity is one of the most challenging issues a not-for-profit leader must manage. A diversified organization that accurately represents the community the agency serves is far more likely to have a stronger base of support from its constituents. The approaches that leaders employ to attract, sustain and celebrate diversity will also serve to attract diverse contributors. Grantmakers and funders are increasingly focused on diversity within the organization, especially among the individuals entrusted with its governance. Attention to organizational diversity should not only account for the “usual suspects” of cultural, gender, age or ethnicity. The effort should also result in a breadth of resources for the agency in areas of skills, professional expertise and good old fashioned hands-on experience. I believe that rather than asking the question, “Who do we need to be diverse?” leaders can ask, “Who do we need to fulfill the mission of the organization?” Simply by staying on track with the mission, my experience has proven that organizations will find that they frequently obtain a level of diversity previously thought impossible to achieve. Recently, I witnessed a board recruitment process that used a mission-based focus as the key to success. I was the last remaining founding member of a local foundation board, and when my second term was up, the board felt I should stay for a third term. Recognizing that my doing so would perpetuate “Founders Syndrome,” I insisted it was important for me to leave. Unfortunately, two other board members terms were also complete, which left the board with less than the required number of trustees. Rather than panic, the Executive Director and remaining board members did something profound for a small organization. They took a hard look at the make-up of the remaining board members who, like me, were mostly middle-aged white men. They reviewed the foundation’s mission, and then reviewed the organization’s most ardent supporters, volunteers and contributors. This was an inherently diverse group. They then invited many of those stakeholders to attend a recruitment orientation, where leaders of the foundation discussed the organization’s mission and the work it was doing, explained how the organization was governed, and offered opportunities for people to participate in the governance process. After the first orientation, five of the individuals who attended expressed an interest in joining the board. As a result, this small organization now has one of the most diverse boards in the community. Not only does the board reflect the community it serves in terms of culture, gender, age, and ethnicity, they now have a wealth of hands-on experience sitting around the boardroom table. This activity was so successful in revitalizing the foundation they have another orientation scheduled in the near future and plan to make this a semi-annual event. This shift came about because the board recruitment process was focused on the mission of the organization and the individuals in the community who felt a connection to the organization at diverse levels. Their input now adds to the diversity of experience in serving the cause in its governance decision-making. There was never a question of “What diversity box can we check off if we get these individuals on the board?” The question for board recruitment was and remains, “What diverse qualities do these individuals have that will ensure the foundation can successfully fulfill its mission and serve its constituency?” An important lesson can be learned about diversity from this example; that is, diversity in the recruitment process will breed diversity in results to serve the mission. While the example I’ve used above is a board recruitment situation, diversity among the ranks of all the people is equally important for staying mission-focused in all aspects of the agency. Several years ago, I sat on the board of a local organization serving the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community. The organization was in transition following the termination of the Executive Director. Even though a search process was underway for a replacement, the politics among the organization, the community, the staff, the board and the contributors made it impossible to move forward. Culturally, the organization had no diversity. The staff members were all part of the LGBT community. The board members were too, and knew each other well. The community the organization served was limited to the LGBT community. In a word, the political environment surrounding the organization and atmosphere during the hiring process was toxic. As a result, a decision was made to retain an Interim Executive Director to assist the organization through the transition until they could complete the search process for a new leader. And, in that decision, the board did something that eventually changed the culture of the organization and made a bold statement about the importance of diversity. The interim that was hired had all of the skills needed to usher a social services organization through a successful transition, but was not a member of the LGBT community. The politics meant nothing to him. This allowed him to do his job without being caught up in the politics of the organization and the community the organization serves. As a result, he was able to cool the political environment of the organization and bring the agency into alignment behind its mission. Once someone was able to step out of the fray and get the organization re-focused on its mission, the group was able to move forward and start to become a vital part of the community again. Diversity can bring many good things to an organization. And, by the same token, diversity can play a large role in negating the sameness that can harm an organization. Diversity is essential to an organization’s success. Change in composition and culture will not occur overnight. It takes time and commitment from everyday governance. It also requires a commitment to continually engage stakeholders in the mission. For those of us who lead not-for-profit organizations, perhaps the greatest lesson to be learned from these two examples is that if diversity is to be achieved, we, as leaders, have to investigate and execute many diverse ways to invite and welcome in those who are different.
About Jeffrey Wacha About Vantage PointThe mission of Vantage Point is to inspire & build leadership in the voluntary sector. This publication is intended to be a medium of communication and information for the many organizations active in the volunteer and not-for-profit sector. The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect official policy of the Board of Directors of Vantage Point. Vantage Point |
