Title: Nonprofits & Diversity: Why a Lack of Diversity Can Have a Negative Impact - BoardEffect
Headings: Nonprofits & Diversity: Why a Lack of Diversity Can Have a Negative Impact
Nonprofits & Diversity: Why a Lack of Diversity Can Have a Negative Impact
Lack of Diversity Among Nonprofit Organizations
Giving Diversity a Back Seat to Advocacy
Lack of Diversity Among Nonprofits Is a Flagrant Issue
Board Evaluations Highlight the Lack of Diversity and Improve Board Performance
Making Diversity a Priority in the Nonprofit Realm

Content: While many organizations don’t have formal policies on advocacy, board directors and members have strong commitments to advocating for the rights and protections of those they serve. There’s no doubt that advocacy has the potential to enhance the lives of their constituencies, but without diversity, they are not accurately representing them. Chief executives and board chairs acknowledge that they aren’t taking the best advantage of their membership’s passion for advocacy because they don’t have diverse ambassadors. Nonprofit leaders cited ambassadorship as one of the top-three areas on which they could improve. Lack of Diversity Among Nonprofits Is a Flagrant Issue
While chief executives and nonprofit board directors are looking the other way, their communities, donors and others are judging the nonprofit by what they see. Some of them are finding that nonprofit organizations aren’t connected well enough with their communities to understand their needs. They’re also finding that the nonprofit’s promotional materials don’t match the organization’s values, culture and public messages. There’s a disconnect between 1) their words and actions, and 2) their activities, especially when it comes to diversity and ethnicity. People feel more welcome volunteering for organizations when they can work side-by-side with at least a few others who share their culture, language and experiences. They want to know that they have representation within the organization without being a token minority.