When I was invited to write a piece on “the importance of diversity and inclusion in boardrooms” my heart filled with a deep sense of joy, as I am a 42-year-old black female entrepreneur, publisher, author, family advocate and a mother of five entrepreneurial children (of St. Lucian, Nigerian and Tunisian heritage).
Therefore, I am sure that you can imagine why I would feel so strongly about representation when it comes to positions of management and leadership.
I truly believe that for executive teams to perform well they would require its members to be diverse both in their thinking and in their heritage and more importantly have a lived experiences where possible.
Whenever I am fortunate enough to be greeted by a company board that has made the effort to appoint a diverse board of directors and to ensure a culture of diversity and inclusion in the boardroom, I feel that this speaking’s a thousand words before our meeting even commences.
With the ever-increasing nature of complexities within our global economy, diversity and inclusion in the difference that will make the difference when seeking unique opportunities of the future because having a broad range of perspectives can help organisations and their management recognise new strategic goals, and areas of opportunity that will provide value to the people they serve.
One of the responsibilities of the board of directors is to identifying areas of risk and opportunity.
This acts as an informed counsel for strategic growth and assessing the performance of the CEO and to accomplish this, boards require a dynamically diverse and inclusive mix of individuals.
As technology continues to develop, so too does the need for effective risk management and corporate governance from a diverse and inclusive board of directors.
An inclusive and diverse board of directors’ thoughts and opinions can help to consider various risks and opportunities.
Therefore, decision-making by an inclusive and diverse board of directors can have a significant impact on the company and beyond.
Below are some of the primary benefits that I would like to highlight:
1. An inclusive and diverse board of directors promotes healthy debate can lead to better decisions.
2. An inclusive and diverse board of directors have what it takes to make your company knowledgeable and sensitive to a wider variety of groups.
3. An inclusive and diverse board of directors will make tackling from an array of perspectives.
4. An inclusive and diverse board of directors may become the blueprint for birthing great ideas as the collective may have an intent to disrupt unconscious biases.
5. An inclusive and diverse board of directors will seek to appeal to clients and customers that are also diverse.
6. An inclusive and diverse board of directors reflects the real world.
7. An inclusive and diverse board of directors means your business is more reflective of the communities which they represent.
8. An inclusive and diverse board of directors means they are better equipped to anticipate and cater to the needs of all key stakeholders, most notably – shareholders, employees and consumers.
9. An inclusive and diverse board of directors can help your business communicate its dedication and commitment to the broader community, in turn helping to improve brand recognition and reputation.
10. An inclusive and diverse board of directors helps to provide your business with a unique edge in a highly competitive market.
11. An inclusive and diverse board of directors is essential for boardrooms to be reflective of the forever changing workforce and consumer demographics present in today’s world.
12. An inclusive and diverse board of directors is the difference that would make the difference now and for generations to come.
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