This document discusses strategies for improving diversity within nonprofit organizations. It begins by outlining why diversity is important for nonprofits, such as better understanding the communities they serve. The document then provides insights and recommendations for engaging three key demographic groups: females, Hispanics, and millennials. It suggests tactics like using social media, mobile accessibility, and micro-volunteering opportunities. Finally, the document presents a framework for achieving diversity that involves defining goals, assessing the current board, and improving recruitment and retention of diverse members.

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Diversity: Everyone wants it, how do you get it!
Yaziri Orrostieta | November 2014

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Agenda
 Why is diversity vital to your organization?
 Insights into 3 key segments you need to be reaching right
now!
 How to expand diversity into your Board of Directors

3. + Why is
diversity vital
to your
organization?

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Raise your hand if you agree!

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Why is diversity important?
 A strong, vibrant board of directors is a clear indicator of a
healthy organization.
 When an nonprofit's board reflects the diversity of the
community served, the organization will be better able to build
bridges to potential donors or decision makers in the
community.
 Ability to access resources in the community and to respond to
external influences that are changing the environment in which
it is working, or those served.
 Diversity should be thought of as a basic indicator of a
nonprofit’s capacity to sustain itself in the long term.

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What is diversity?

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How do you achieve diversity?

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Females
onboard

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Insights:
 Women commend 80% of US spending
 Women have fully embraced technology that can aid them in
their time-pressed lifestyle
 Today, just 4% of families with kids under the age of 18 fall into
the working father and stay-at-home mother model
 32% of women, compared to just 25% of men, volunteer across
every state, age group, and education level
 Women are increasingly taking on leadership roles- leading to
more purchasing and decision making power
 While it may sound like a distinction without a difference,
women don’t support causes; they join them!

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How to engage females:
 Women prefer to receive and read information about an
organization via email.
 Add a “newsletter sign-up” form on your website
 Include that same sign up form on your social media efforts
 Make sure your website is mobile friendly
 Make your message simple and direct
 Women pass along information and value feedback and
recommendation from close family/friends
 Go beyond Facebook!
 Pinterest – 87% of users are females
 Twitter - 57% of users are females
 Instagram – 55% of users are females

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How to engage females:
 Value their opinions
 Make them part of an “exclusive panel”
 Conduct focus groups
 Launch an online survey
 Speak their language: 4C’s
 Care: Show women that you care
 Connect: Women really value community and connections
 Control: Women want to be in control
 Cultivated: While it takes longer to engage women as donors or
volunteers, once engaged their commitment is very high

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Hispanic
Outreach

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Insights:
 Less than 7% of total foundation funding is directed towards
efforts targeting Hispanics as volunteers, donors, or board
members
 Since 1998, Hispanic volunteerism has grown 14.7% in the
state of Texas
 71% of Hispanic Millennials believe in the American Dream
versus 55% non-Hispanic Millennials
 Hispanics outpace all ethnic groups in mobile data service
consumption

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How to engage Latinos:
 Hispanics are seeking to strengthen their community and
create new opportunities
 Engage recognized Hispanic community leaders
 Create a sense of community/family
 Ask! Hispanics are eager to volunteer, give, and take a
leadership role
 Use Event Marketing {Group giving versus individual giving}

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How to engage Latinos:
 Use traditional media
 Radio is extremely effective in East Texas
 Television has the highest viewership between 6:00 pm & 9:00 pm
 Embrace technology
 Text messages versus email
 Apps / mobile websites versus desktop version
 Don’t forget to think multi-generation
 Transcreation, do not just translation

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Connecting
with
Millennials

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Insights

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How to engage Millennials
 Having ready-to-go “micro-volunteering” opportunities
 When choosing volunteer activities, Millennials will often act quickly.
As such, they want opportunities to respond immediately to
inspiration. Waiting to respond to their inquiries could cost you their
involvement as they move on to the next inspiration.
 Cultivate your current donor, volunteer, and board list
 81% of survey respondents prefer to learn about volunteer
opportunities from friends or family members.
 Don’t assume they are too young to have skills and perspective
 Remember that many Millennials are college grads and/or have
been in the workforce for a couple of years and more.

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How to engage Millennials
 Make sure you have an online donation strategy
 Mobile website
 Social Media
 Search Engine Marketing
 Social Listening
 Report financial conditions
 Make it available online
 Email distribution
 Internal collateral

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Framework
for
Achieving
Diversity

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Framework for creating change
• Define “diversity” for your organization
• Assess current situation
• Recruit and attract new board members
• Retain board members
Framework| FIO Partners, LLC

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Define “diversity” for your
organization
 Examine and set clear expectations on what a diverse board
would look like:
 Example: We server mainly single parents who lack a college
degree. Our goal is to have at least “x” single parents who have
gone back to school.
 Example: 38% of our clients reside in households within zip code
14838; we need to recruit at least “x%” individuals who work/live in
that area.
 Align expectations to your mission statement and purpose

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Assess current situation
 What is the current composition of your board?
 differences in background
 viewpoint/perspective
 professional experience
 education, skills and, other individual qualities and attributes that
contribute to the Board’s effectiveness and quality of work

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Recruit and attract new board
members
 Evaluate your recruitment plan
 Identify new recruitment efforts to undertake:
 Are you using social media {beyond Facebook} to seek new board
members?
 Post your "Great Board Member Wanted" ad on free websites that
match people seeking boards to join, such as:
 Boardnetusa.org – “Connecting nonprofit boards with new
leaders.”
 Volunteermatch.org – “Connecting good people & good causes
together.”
 Bridgestar.org – “Collaborating to accelerate social impact.”
 Board Member Swap

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Retain board members
 Be conscious of Board Member burnout
 Augment Board committees with additional volunteers
 Assess the health of your Board periodically and address
concerns
 Engage Board Members by sharing organization success
stories

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QUESTIONS?