15 Apr Diversity in Nonprofit Board Recruitment and Retention

By Jackie Sue Griffin, MBA, MS

Diversity in your nonprofit board members benefits your organization both financially and culturally. Let’s explore a few of the significant impacts of building a diverse and inclusive board and a few of our best tips on recruiting and retaining a true mix of members.

Positive Impacts of Board Diversity

Increased Productivity

A diverse board expands your organization’s talent pool, bringing different skill sets and talents together. This type of board tends to encourage open-mindedness, ignite creativity and drive innovation. The more varied your board’s perspectives and experiences, the more they will generate (positive) cognitive conflict and facilitate problem-solving. This leads to better decision-making, organizational and process improvement, which results in greater productivity.

Deeper Engagement

As boards grow visibly in diversity, they attract additional diverse candidates. Breaking down traditional boundaries and increasing collaborations among your members can not only cause each board member to be more passionately and productively engaged but also grow your nonprofit’s influence in the community.

Improved Service

Diversity within your board can revolutionize your culture by strengthening attachment to and action on the values, beliefs, and behaviors amongst the board and staff, which will impact how they deliver services in pursuit of your mission.

Staff & Donor Retention

Nonprofit boards that reflect a commitment to diversity in recruitment and retention have a competitive advantage: Visible diversity improves the organization’s image and can strengthen loyalty and dedication among employees and donors. And we all understand the cost of recruiting and onboarding new hires and new donor acquisition.

5 Tips to Increase Board Diversity

1. Start with consensus on the idea that recruiting for diversity in your workforce will benefit your organization.
2. Create an environment during the candidate review process to help potential members feel welcome and included.
3. Ensure that your website communicates your core values and beliefs and the value you place on a diverse pool of talents, skills, personalities and experiences.
4. Evaluate your board position descriptions. Do you use neutral language, or are your words hindering diversity?
5. Use a diverse interview panel to demonstrate the value you place on celebrating our differences.

Here at JSG & Associates, we support the passionate leaders who make nonprofits successful. For more information about us, visit our website.