inclusive leadership in action: diversity includes disability kathy miller, msw, director of...
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Inclusive Leadership in Action: Diversity Includes Disability
Kathy Miller, MSW, Director of Community Services Guy Caruso, Ph.D., Western Coordinator
November 11, 2014 AUCD Conference, Washington D.C.
Pennsylvania’s University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
Education, Research and Service
VISIONA society where all people are valued and respected, and where all people have the knowledge, opportunity and power to improve their lives and the lives of others.
MISSIONThe Institute on Disabilities leads by example, creating connections and promoting networks within and among communities so that people
with disabilities are recognized as integral to
the fabric of community life.
Inclusive Leadership in Action (ILA)
The vision of the ILA project is that generic community organizations include qualified individuals with disabilities as fully participating members of their decision-making bodies, boards and committees.
Inclusive Leadership in Action (ILA)
The mission of ILA is to identify, develop and disseminate evidence-based resources, materials and techniques on including individuals with disabilities to decision making bodies of generic community organizations.
Inclusive Leadership in Action (ILA)
This Project is funded by the Pennsylvania
Developmental Disabilities Council for two years with the possibility of funding for an additional two years.
Inclusive Leadership in Action (ILA)
Technical assistance will be provided to selected statewide, diverse, generic community organizations so that they can recruit, support and sustain qualified individuals with disabilities as fully participating members of their decision making bodies, boards and committees.
ILA Presentation Objectives
• Discuss the design, structure and operations of the ILA Project’s Advisory Committee and Work Groups as a working model for successful inclusion of individuals with disabilities on decision making bodies;
• Share the results of our findings in the literature on the benefits and challenges of diversity for organizations and their decision making bodies;
ILA Presentation Objectives
• Share the results of our statewide survey of community organizations and their views on diversity including the frequency and willingness to include individuals with disabilities on their decision-making bodies; and
• Discuss our plans for approaching community organizations and providing them with the necessary resources, materials and techniques on including individuals with disabilities to their decision making bodies.
ILA Advisory Committee and Work Groups
The Advisory Committee is comprised of 16 individuals from across Pennsylvania
representing:• Generic Community Leadership
Development Organizations • Disability Organizations• Disability Leaders
• Board Members of generic community organizations
• 50% of ILA Committee members are individuals experiencing disabilities
ILA Advisory Committee and Work Groups
50% of ILA Committee members are individuals experiencing disabilities
ILA Community Partners
Self-Advocates United as One
Leadership Harrisburg
The Coro Center for Civic Leadership: Pittsburgh
JT Consulting Services
ILA Advisory Committee and Work Groups
ILA’s Committee and Work Group structure is designed to:
• Model successful diverse decision making; and
• Demonstrate the value of individuals with disabilities actively participating and serving as leaders on decision
making bodies.
ILA Advisory Committee and Work Groups
• The Advisory Group meets as a whole on a bi-monthly basis and is charged with meeting the objectives of the Project through small group work
• The Work Groups meet on an as needed basis and consist of: Educational Design Work Group Accommodations Work Group Research Work Group Resource Work Group
Research Findings in the Literature on Including Individuals with Disabilities on Boards
• It is difficult finding evidence-based research stating why it would be important/ valuable to have individuals with disabilities on a board of directors.
• As Konrad, Prasad and Pringle note in their 2006 article “ The majority of literature on diversity on boards concerned gender. There were a few evidence sources relating to ethnicity and there was almost no information on disability.”
Research Findings in the Literature on Including Individuals with Disabilities on Boards
In a survey of non profit boards from across Canada, conducted in 2008, we found that the majority of board members were between thirty and sixty years old, and 44 percent were women. Almost 28 percent of the organizations indicated that there was at least one person with a disability on their board, while 22.4 percent of those surveyed had a board member who was openly lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Only 13 percent of board members were what in Canada are termed “visible minorities,” or persons of color. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
Research Findings in the Literature on Including Individuals with Disabilities on Boards
“ Whilst most academic research tackling board diversity is focused on women, numerous social groups (racial/ethnic minorities, disabled people, homosexuals) remain conspicuously underrepresented in decision-making in general and on boards of directors in particular, and this is also a gap in the literature.” (Stone-Romeo E., Stone D., and Lukaszewski K., 2006)
Why is Diversity so Important?
“Recognize that diversity brings richness. Diversity brings new ideas. Diversity brings growth. Diversity brings dynamism. Diversity brings energy. And lack of diversity means sameness, dullness, lack of growth.”
Interviewed board member
Why is a Diverse Board a Benefit?
• Diversity for the sake of diversity, even without pointed constituent representation, can form a base for innovation and creative thinking.
• A diverse board sends a message and sets a powerful example for the entire organization. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
Why is a Diverse Board a Benefit?
• By understanding the power of diversity and by utilizing it appropriately, a nonprofit board possesses the basic tools for creating a responsive and open-minded organization.
• More diversity leads to superior financial performance, better
strategic decision making, increased responsiveness to community and client stakeholders, and an enhanced ability to attract and retain top talent. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
A homogeneous board may not always be ready to deal effectively with problems due to an inherent near- sightedness. Diversity on a board breeds varying opinions, approaches, attitudes, and solutions. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
It requires open-mindedness, curiosity, acceptance, and responsiveness, which can ultimately facilitate understanding and willingness to work together. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
Boards are often expected to “represent” the organization’s constituency. This is a way to create accountability and form a link with the constituents, as long as representation equals to reflecting the needs of the stakeholders, not creating political fights between board members. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
By focusing on defining board diversity in terms of skills and aptitude, we can create a structure for matching organizational needs with acceptable candidates. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
Functional inclusion was found to be positively associated with overall board effectiveness, cohesion, and commitment, while it did little for group cohesion and commitment. Social inclusion, on the other hand, had little direct impact on board effectiveness, but added significantly to group cohesion and commitment. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
There is a need to balance both social and functional inclusion, or else boards neglect one dimension (social inclusion) in favor of focusing prominently on the other (functional inclusion). (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
The cumulative implications of diversity and inclusion are complex and intertwined, but largely support our general theme that functional and social inclusion enhance the effectiveness and viability of governing groups, particularly in relation to making the more diverse groups effective, cohesive, and committed. (Bradshaw P., Fredette C., 2012)
The Value of Diversity on Decision Making Boards
The (direct and indirect) patterns of relationships that we found between board diversity and board effectiveness speak to the transformative potential that lies at the heart of inclusion. (Bradshaw, Fredette, 2012)
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
• The Research Work Group developed a 14 Question Survey to collect information and
attitudes on Board Diversity including Disability
• Disseminated to Generic Community Organizations through Survey Monkey
• To date we have 94 respondents representing 35 organizations
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
What comes to mind when you think of diversity and group decision-making? N=66
Number of Respondents
Percentage of Responses
Inclusion of many perspectives makes for higher quality decisions 25 35.9%
People of all races and genders should be included. 20 31.3%
Diversity is standard for group decision making. 13 20.3%
Response unclear or not relevant to question 7 10.9%
Diversity is not required. 1 1.6%
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
88% of the respondents said that their organization actively sought to recruit members
with the goal of increasing diversity
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
88% of the respondents said that their organization actively sought to recruit board members with the goal of increasing diversity
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
• 100% of board member respondents indicated that they would consider the inclusion of a qualified candidate with a disability to serve on their board of directors or decision making group if they knew where/how to identify and recruit them.
• 81% of respondents indicated that they would very likely nominate a highly qualified candidate with a disability to serve on their decision making group.
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
71% of the Respondents indicated that their community organization have a nominating committee to select board members
When asked how does your board usually recruit new members? N= 64
Number of Respondents
Percentage of Responses
Nomination and Recommendation 32 50.0%Informal Networks (Word-of-Mouth) 19 29.7%Other/No Process 6 9.4%Application Process 4 6.3%Volunteers 3 4.7%
ILA Statewide Board Diversity Survey
39 Board members indicated that they would be interested in receiving information on
recruiting and supporting a qualified person with a disability to serve on their decision
making groups/board of directors
ILA Curriculum Design
• The ILA Curriculum will be delivered to board members of selected interested generic Community Organizations.
• We will select community organizations in western and central Pennsylvania, located near Pittsburgh and Harrisburg.
ILA Curriculum Design
Pilot training will begin in the Spring of 2015Organizations will be invited to training based on their: – Expressed interest in participating, ( identified
through their survey response);– Their affiliation with our community partners and
members.
ILA Curriculum Design
The intent of the training is to: provide evidence-based information on the
value of including qualified individuals with disabilities on an organization’s governance boards; so that
board members will learn the intrinsic value to their organizations of more inclusive boards in our communities.
ILA Curriculum Design
The ILA curriculum has 5 Learning ObjectivesBoard Members will:
1. Understand the theory and evidence behind the idea that effective inclusion of many different perspectives leads to better decision making.
Evidence–Based Information
Key Objective to be shared:A compilation of user friendly evidence-
based facts on the benefits of a diverse board to the organization.
ILA Curriculum Design
Board Members will:
2. Understand the current practices and/or trends in their community regarding board diversity specifically related to individuals with disabilities.
Current Practices and Trends
Some Key Actions include :
Sharing the results of our survey.Highlighting testimonials/vignettes about current
successful board members who experience a wide range of disabilities.
ILA Curriculum Design
Board Members will: 3.Know how to and be willing to make
accommodations for people with disabilities on their boards, committees and work groups.
Accommodations
• Some Key Objectives: Raise awareness of the individual nature of
accommodations needed for people with disabilities.
Be willing to make accommodations on their own boards.
Have information on how to make accommodations.
ILA Curriculum Design
Board Members will: 4. Know how to locate and access potential
new board members with disabilities in their area.
Key Actions:Provide boards with resources on where potential board
members may be found; e.g. disability organizations and disability leadership development training program contacts.
Provide technical assistance to community organizations in the matching process.
Locate and Access Potential Board Members
ILA Curriculum Design
Board Members will: 5. Know the basic requirements of creating a
group culture that maximizes diversity.
Creating a Group Culture
Key learning Objectives :Understand how to share knowledge.Know how to build a culture of close listening.Know how to promote open communication.Is able to create well-defined process and goals.Know how to use tools and process to support equal
participation.
Inclusive leadership in Action Bibliography
Bradshaw, P. & Fredette, C. (2012) The Inclusive Nonprofit Boardroom: Leveraging the Transformative Potential of Diversity, BoardSource ‘Benefiting from Diversity’ and Non Profit Quarterly Burns, C., Barton, K. & Kerby, S. (July 2012) The State of Diversity in Today’s Workforce: As Our Nation Becomes More Diverse So Too Does Our Workforce, Center for American Progress
Diversity on Boards (2014) National Council of Nonprofits, www.councilofnonprofits.org Boards and Governance
Ferreira, D. (2010). Board diversity. In H.K. Baker & R. Anderson (Eds.), Corporate governance: Asynthesis of theory, research, and practice (pp. 225-242). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
First People of California, Inc. (2008). Boardmanship: Inclusive and accessible (PDF document). Retrieved from http://www.dds.ca.gov/ConsumerCorner/docs/Boardsmanship_Eng.pdf.
Inclusive leadership in Action Bibliography
Fredette, B., Fredette, C. , & Bradshaw, P ( 2006) Creating Diverse Non-Profit Boards: Engaging Multiple Dimensions of Power1, Schulich School of Business, York University
Goodstein, J; Gautam, K; and Boeker, W (1994) The effects of board size and diversity on strategic change, Strategic Management Journal (Impact Factor: 3.78). 02/1994; 15(3):241 - 250. DOI: 10.1002/smj.4250150305
Hewlett, S.A., Marshall, M. & Sherbib, L. (December, 2013) How Diversity Can Drive Innovation in Harvard Business Review - The Magazine.
Institute of Corporate Directors (2011). Diversity in the boardroom: findings and recommendations of the institute of corporate directors. Toronto, ON: Institute of Corporate Directors.
Menendez, Senator R. (2010) 2010 Corporate Diversity Report - www.menendez.senate.gov/.../CorporateDiversityReport2....
Inclusive leadership in Action Bibliography
Sealy, R., Doldor, E., & Vinnicombe, S. (2009). Increasing Diversity on Public and Private Sector Boards. Part 1 - How diverse are boards and why? London: Government Equalities Office.
Stone-Romero, E., Stone, D., & Lukaszewski, K. (2006). The influence of disability on role-taking in organizations. In A. Konrad, P. Prasad, & J. Pringle (Eds.), Handbook of workplace diversity. (pp. 402-432). London: SAGE Publications Ltd.
Strachan, G. , French, E.L. & Burgess, J. (2010) The origins and development of managing diversity. In Strachan, Glenda, French, Erica L., & Burgess, John (Eds.) Managing Diversity in Australia: Theory and Practice. McGraw-Hill, Sydney, Australia, pp. 1-16.
Thomas, D.A. (September 2004) Diversity as Strategy, Harvard Business Review