Achieving the right mix: towards a more diverse Board
(Part 1)
If your community group Board consists mainly of middle-aged,
middle-class men from a business or legal background, it is probably
time that you thought about putting in place a diversity strategy –
particularly if the work you do has little or nothing to do with
middle-aged, middle-class lawyers and businessmen!
Of course, that is not to say that such people cannot make an enormous
contribution to your Board and the community group it serves, nor that
all of those fitting this profile should be kicked immediately and
unceremoniously from their seats.
Rather, you should start thinking about how your Board might evolve
into a more inclusive, responsive and representative body, and about
steps your organisation could take to reach that goal.
What is meant by the term "diversity"?
In simple terms, "diversity" refers to the degree to which a Board
comprises a broad range of backgrounds and interests, taking into
account issues of language, ethnicity and culture, gender, sexual
orientation, age, socio-economic status and disability.
In a near-perfect world, every Board would have a seat reserved for all
of the different groups and sub-groups of society. In a perfect world,
the seats would not need to be reserved, but would be filled naturally
by a diverse range of people.
In reality, of course, this is unlikely to happen. Many groups have
traditionally operated at the margins of or outside power structures and
it is only in recent times that real attempts have been made to make
sure their voices are heard. Furthermore, to have all the different
groups and individuals that make up society adequately represented on
every Board would make for governance structures too enormous to be of
any use at all to the organisations they serve.
The key, then, is to think about the particular make-up of your
particular Board, taking into account:
- what your organisation has been set up to do;
- the area and sector that your organisation operates within; and,
- the individuals and groups it serves.
You should ensure at the very least that your Board includes the voices
of the organisation's users. It is hard to see how a governing body can
properly carry out its role without the views of its stakeholders being
represented at the decision-making level. If your group primarily serves
young people, for example, make sure there are young people on the
Board. If the group provides services to people with disabilities then
people with disabilities need to be on the Board.
Why should our Board become more diverse?
Increasing the variety of people who serve on your Board can offer the
opportunity to tap into a rich pool of talented candidates, bring new
voices, experiences and approaches to the decision-making process, add
depth to existing skills and ideas and, perhaps most importantly, bring
the Board closer to properly representing its stakeholders.
Greater diversity will also expand the networks available to your
group, help you to reach your "audience," increase the profile of your
group and build support for what you are doing in key constituencies.
A number of studies have found that having a diverse Board can also
make good business sense, bringing about better organisational
performance – both financial and non-financial. Diversity makes for
better governance – and better governance inevitably means better
results.
» This is Part 1 of a two-part help
sheet. You should now read Part 2.
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