The complexities and challenges that organizations and businesses face require boards to possess a broad set of competencies as their primary resource. Having diverse board members provides the depth of knowledge and perspectives from multiple perspectives as well as a vast experience required to have productive discussions that lead to well-rounded decisions.

However, many boards struggle to make the leap from “nice to have” to becoming a requirement. The discussion about diversity in boardrooms tends to focus on social and ethnicity as well as gender. However it is essential to broaden the discussion to include diverse professional backgrounds and abilities.

To create a diverse board requires commitment and a shift in thinking. Some trustees aren’t at ease with the task of rethinking their legacy processes, such as the tendency for nominating committees to search in the same places for new members. Boards can increase diversity by expanding their search horizons to include diverse communities, attracting candidates who are experts in the areas of greatest need (for example an organization that is a consumer might be seeking a specialist in marketing or an international business may want directors skilled in geopolitics) and establishing relationships with historically underrepresented candidates well before the need arises.

Board members who have a more equal board culture pop over to this site claim that having the right mix of professional and social diversity creates a positive board environment where everyone’s opinions are respected. They explain that a more diverse board is better prepared to deal with the complexities facing their organization, as well as those of its customers and stakeholders.