Clyde Fitch Report: In some cultural sectors, it is axiomatic that we need to diversify our cultural organizations and the boards that oversee them. Recently, the New York Times reported on a 2015 meeting between the commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and leading city cultural institutions. The heart of the discussion, as reported by the Times, was that boards and institutions need to more accurately reflect the city within which they live. Unfortunately, because it focused on the progress being made, the article did not address the complex and deep-seated issues involved in diversification that we often shy away from nor did it describe success: what it means to be more reflective of the city.
3 comments:
This article, while still a little vague and weak in terms of the whole issue, does a pretty good job at outlining the ideologies that surround diversification in industries, especially the non-profit sectors. The author outlines a very good point in that companies need to “embrace the complexity of the issue and be willing to consider uncomfortable issues”, in that it is not as easy of a fix to just hire more POC to the boards. I also enjoy the ‘looking forward’ stance this author takes, as it is more relatable than others I have seen on this topic in previous articles. The author goes into detail about the hiring process and says “when identifying the characteristics they are looking for in new candidates, they need consider the interests, capabilities, and behavior of the potential candidates rather than limit their expectations to those used to build their current boards”, which is an excellent point in that the foundation of a thing should not be relied upon if change is needed.
I like that this article points out "what has proven effective in diversifying hiring is a mandatory enforced requirement that addresses the root of the problem." In other words, before we select from a pool of qualified candidates, we need to realize that minority candidates have less sufficient resources for education and training, and that having the same level of expertise and performance means exceptional talent and hard work. This type of thinking is used in affirmative actions in the college admissions process as well, to acknowledge the different backgrounds of the students and how it plays a role in affecting their performance. In the context of corporate hiring, it is often difficult for employers to look beyond the competency of the candidates, because they think the diversity of perspectives and inputs don't really affect the work they do (which is more likely than not a misconception). For boards and institutions whose specific purpose is to serve the community, however, a diverse group of personnel is extremely important, because, as the article pointed out, it should "accurately reflect the city within which they live." The article advocates for implementing a rule for diversifying hiring in cultural institutions. This rule will definitely help to an extent, but sustainable progress can only be attained if we address "the root of the problem" -- promote education for minority groups and educate the general public on the importance and ideologies behind diversity.
I think the fact that organizations are being run in a community in which the board is not fully representative seems to me to be unproductive and hindering a company from succeeding to its full potential. I don't think it is possible for an organization to fully understand the needs of its community without fully representing that community. As the article points out, this is something that has happened throughout history and only now are we talking about the need for this to change. I agree with the article that this might be hard and uncomfortable. How do we get a diverse board? I think an organization can start by looking within that community to hire these board members. When a company goes global, it doesn't hire a manager from Texas to run a Japanese based store, it hires a Japanese manager. I found the example of the orchestra blind auditions very interesting and really cool but I understand how it is more difficult to do such things in business. I do agree with one of the final points the author makes about how if the board were to be an accurate representation of the community than the other problems of success for the business will be solved through that representation.
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