Developing
Diverse Senior
Management
National Human Services Assembly
Presented by Karen Key, VP for Programs
June 10, 2011
Consulting team: Adam Drucker
Beth Gonzales
Selena Juneau-Vogel
Monisha Makhijani
Michael Turi
Project
Objective
To identify practices that increase
the ethnic and racial diversity of
senior management within
Assembly member organizations.
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
in Member Organizations
Average % professionals of color
All Staff
37%
Senior Management
29%
Board
21%
As reported by HR survey respondents. N = 25.
Research
Process
Surveys
CEO & HR
Literature
Review
Interviews
Themes
Criteria
CEO = 25 partial +19 complete = 44
Recommendations
HR = 18 partial + 25 complete = 43
Responding Orgs = 40
Interviews = 25
Research
Themes
Develop
& Retain
Strategic
Diversity
Senior
Management
Diversity
Attract &
Recruit
Organizational
Culture
Executive
Commitment
Metrics &
Evaluation
Recommendation
Criteria
1. What practices effectively increase
workplace diversity overall?
2. What practices increase senior
management diversity specifically?
3. What practices are feasible for Assembly
member organizations to implement?
4. What needs to happen first?
5. Are the recommendations
complementary?
Strategic
Diversity
HR survey respondents:
63%
said their
organization
defines diversity
43%
said their
organization links
diversity to their
strategic plan
 Members value & use strategic diversity.
Strategic
Diversity
A solid start…taking it to the next level.
Develop an Organization- Specific
Business Case for Diversity
 What does diversity do for your
organization and your mission?
 What type of diversity do you want?
 How do your initiatives & policies
support your strategy?
Organizational
Culture
An open and inclusive environment is key….
HR survey respondents:
Training & Development
Employee Benefits
Recruitment Efforts
Strategic Planning
Diversity Policies & Procedures
Budgeting & Resource Allocation
0%
50%
100%
 Members encourage employee input in many forms.
Organizational
Recommendations for taking it to the next level
Culture
Promote Transparent & Inclusive Culture
 Make space for many cultural heritages
 Diverse staff attracts diverse candidates
 Inhibit potential bias

Survey reveals a good starting point, but this is still a major reason for turnover
across sectors in the U.S.
Executive
Commitment
CEO survey respondents:
62%
said their Board
does NOT hold
them accountable
60%
do NOT hold
managers
accountable for
diversity
 Members see a lack of accountability for diversity.
Executive
Commitment
Recommendations for taking it to the next level
Create Wide-Spread Accountability
 Demonstrate your commitment
•
Actively participate in diversity initiatives
• Financially support diversity initiatives
• Continually reinforce strategic value of diversity
 Make yourself accountable
 Make your senior managers accountable
Metrics &
Evaluation
 Members feel measurement is effective.
Metrics &
Evaluation
Recommendations for taking it to the next level
Measure Diversity Program Achievement
 Establish Thoughtful Goals
 Benchmark to Sector
 Benchmark to Geographic Area
 Assess Climate & Performance
Attract &
Recruit
Diversity Recruitment Efforts
Are rated as the 1st or 2nd
Most Effective Practices
for Senior Management Level
 Members feel diversity recruiting is most effective.
Attract &
Recruit
Recommendations for taking it to the next level
Use Targeted Recruitment Strategies
 Seek Out New Pools of Talent
 Involve Diverse Employees in Recruiting
 Engage Search Firms
 Consider Pipelines
Develop
& Retain
69%
HR survey respondents:
50%
do NOT do
succession planning
do NOT have
formal mentoring
 Members lack strong development & retention practices.
Develop
& Retain
Recommendations for taking it to the next level
Invest in Growth & Success of
Current Employees
 Consider Diversity in Leadership
Transition Planning
 Conduct Thorough Onboarding
 Create Mentoring & Sponsorship
Opportunities
Recommendations
for the Assembly
• Facilitate sharing around:
• business cases for diversity
• accountability practices
• onboarding practices
• mentoring programs
• Promote the benefits of human service sector