Be sure you're recruiting the right person to the board—not just “checking a box”

The nonprofit sector broadly has been making inroads in diversifying their boards, and for good reason. Research shows that having diverse perspectives that reflect a range of ethnicities, ages, genders, backgrounds and political viewpoints adds value to a nonprofit's work in many ways, including better decision-making, and programming that serves the organization's community of constituents. However, for some nonprofits, the quest for diversification can sometimes mean simply finding someone that fills a demographic niche instead of bringing someone on board that will truly add value to the organization.