Recruitment Strategies to Improve Board Diversity | Article

Improving the diversity of boards is known to be essential for good governance.

How can boards improve their diversity? When planning for board recruitment, consider the following aspects:

Succession planning

Good boards have a strong understanding of what skills are leaving and need to be replaced at end of terms. This foresight gives time to ensure that proactive selection to improve diversity can occur within requisite regulatory timeframes.

Many boards now have shadow boards. These shadow boards not only increase diversity of thought on the main board, but also offer a great opportunity for aspiring NEDs and Trustees in a developmental and supportive way. Similarly, committees improve succession planning for main boards by being more flexible in the requirements of committee members’ experience.

Skills gap analysis 

When working on skills gaps and considering diversity, consider which skills are really required. Recruiters often see endless catch-all lists of essential experience and small lists of desirable – is that really the right way round? Ask yourself what fundamental skills the candidate needs for the board to function well and what skills can be learnt on the job or are covered by someone else on the board. Think about the qualifications that are needed. For example, does the role-holder really need a degree? The more you layer the requirements, the narrower your pool (and subsequently diversity) of selection becomes

Attraction and selection

When writing adverts or candidate packs, be mindful of how your copy impacts the diversity of candidates who apply.

Use inclusive language, which is language that proactively uses phrases, or expressions that are welcoming and respectful and avoids phrases and expressions with bias that may exclude individuals from certain conversations. Examples of inclusive language include using gender-neutral phrasing such as chairperson instead of chairman and writing in plain English without jargon or acronyms. Failing to use inclusive language in recruitment materials can narrow your candidate pool.

Actively speak about diversity and inclusion efforts throughout the recruitment materials. Limiting references to diversity and inclusion to a single statement can be less persuasive to candidates that your organisation takes inclusion seriously.

Finally,  consider working with an organisation like WIG to help ensure that your longlist is diverse. Sometimes the only way to guarantee this is via a search methodology. Studies have shown that people are more likely to consider a role if it has been brought to their attention as they feel they have a chance of getting it – this is particularly important with underrepresented groups. For full-service campaigns, we work hard to ensure that the longlist we present is truly representative of diversity. The selection to shortlist is the role of the selection panel, but it is easier to select a diverse group to interview if your list is representative of this in the first place.

Consider your interview panel

Firstly, is it representative of the diversity that exists in your organisation, or indeed you want it to? Secondly, how at ease are you making prospective board members feel. We sometimes hear from candidates that we have worked hard to position a role that the panel reflected an organisation that they don’t see themselves working within. Remember that you must sell the role to prospective candidates as they will be interviewing you at the same time you are interviewing them. Ensure that you are working within the Disability Confident scheme and necessary adjustments are made to ensure fairness for all applicants.

Onboarding

Making people feel at ease when they join a board is best practice at any time.  Ensuring that appropriate buddies have been arranged for new board members, shadowing opportunities exist, required training is arranged in plenty of time, and there is a culture of psychological safety in the board room all enables board members to find their feet quickly. In return, you will get the benefit of their expertise and diversity of thought as soon as possible.

If you would like to discuss any forthcoming recruitment requirements or have any questions on best practice, please do reach out to the Talent team – [email protected]  or visit our website for more information NED and Trustee Recruitment | WIG

Originally published: