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Debbera Hayward, senior director of the corporate diversity department at the American Red Cross.

Editor's note: This article concentrates on the ethnic and racial aspects of diversity; future articles will cover additional areas, such as age and gender.

Quite white is the U.S. association community, despite the increasingly multicultural makeup of the country. Forward-looking executives are embracing an ethical imperative and a business necessity as they reach out to all races and ethnic groups.

CHANGES ARE GOOD THAT YOU ARE WHITE, AS ARE MOST READERS OF this publication. Of the association executives belonging to ASAE and receiving ASSOCIATION MANAGEMENT who have told us their race/ethnicity (12,342 of the 25,273 ASAE members), .3 percent are American Indian/Alaskan, .9 percent are Asian/Pacific Islander, 1.1 percent are Hispanic, and 3.2 percent are black. A whopping 94.5 percent of the reporting ASAE members are white.

What's the problem? Is there a problem? ASAE believes so, and through a major goal in its strategic plan is committed to promoting diversity within its membership, while also helping ASAE members make their organizations more inclusive. (See sidebar, "ASAE's Diversity Committee at Work.")

Increasing inclusiveness is fast proving not only the right thing to do but the you'd-better-do-it thing. Current ethnic and racial demographic trends are transforming U.S. society, changing the makeup of many organizations. In addition to a multicultural mix among members, associations will host in the near future more diverse staffs and volunteer leaders. But that's only if associations get in flow with the demographic shifts, say executives who champion the benefits carried in these waves. Diversity supporters warn that disinterested, unprepared associations will go under as competitors reach out to growing nonwhite groups for staff, membership, and leadership.

These competitors "will fill the void, targeting underserved audiences who don't feel welcome elsewhere," warns Jay Schiavo, CAE, ASAE Diversity Committee vice chair and director of member relations at the American Psychiatric Association, Washington, D.C. "Plus, inclusive businesses won't want to associate with an organization that is still in the Dark Ages on diversity issues."

New business necessity

Inclusiveness is an ethical imperative, and that's reason enough for some people to embrace diversity. Others simply react with a shrug. To stay out of trouble, they follow the laws in place to prevent discrimination, and that's it.

Some of the shruggers are moved when they hear people emphasize diversity's advantages. The most passionate descriptions dwell on the great levels of energy and innovation that result from bringing together people of mixed backgrounds and experiences.

Those still unmoved will find it hard to shrug off the demographic trends that are demanding attention. Current U.S, immigration figures and projeclions point to minority groups soon becoming the majority population.

The most significant-but by no means the only significant-group in terms of these trends has been Hispanics. "The census has estimated that within the next 10 years Hispanics will constitute the largest ethnic minority population within the country, surpassing African-Americans," says ASAE Diversity Committee Chair Ismael Rivera, Jr. Rivera is human resources operation director and equal employment opportunity officer at the American Psychological Association, Washington, D.C. "Clearly, employers will need to recognize Hispanics as a market," he says. "Associations must be cognizant of the political and economic clout that Hispanics are getting and begin to understand the idiosyncrasies of their culture."

"Organizations that do not begin to address ethnic diversity issues may find that they are no longer perceived as relevant to the new worker population and future association members," points out Debbera Hayward, senior director of the corporate diversity department at the American Red Cross, Falls Church, Virginia. "Cultural differences and preferences, language, and educational background are among the many issues associations will have to consider to be the association of choice."

Emily Lange, marketing and program development administrator at the American Society for Quality (ASQ), Milwaukee, says this: "Associations that have a traditional membership base, with a majority of white male members and volunteer leaders, have a unique challenge in that they must continue to honor and support those members that have been instrumental in the organization's success. At the same time, to grow membership, the organization must attract new people who may be very different in terms of experience, needs, requirements, and communication styles. It's a balancing act to be inclusive to all."

Diversifying staff goes a long way toward attracting members from all racial and ethnic groups, points out Susan Darrow, vice president and chief operating officer of the Association Forum of Chicagoland. "It sends a very loud message that we welcome and value a diverse membership, too. Unless we have an atmosphere where all members feel valued and see staff and other members and leaders who are not all `male, pale, and stale,' as one of our members noted, we will begin to see declines in membership."

Anyone still not convinced needs only to read the details about trends, highlighted in the sidebar "Significant U.S. Demographic Shifts." The numbers make the necessity for diversity strategies impossible to ignore. Darrow has studied closely the trends and implications, and as she bluntly puts it, "Organizations will be forced to deal with multiculturalism in the future whether they want to or not."

Who's ready?

A long way to go-and in a hurry. That's the consensus of association executives commenting in this article (most of them members of ASAE's Diversity Committee) when considering associations' preparedness for our changing society. Several executives acknowledge weaknesses they've seen-and some still are seeing-in their own organizations' level of readiness. All are attempting to advance diversity efforts at their associations, and most have progress to report in the form of programs that other organizations may wish to adopt.

These efforts range from the informal to the formal and from the conceptual to the concrete-in total, aiming to raise awareness about diversity and then take steps to become more inclusive. From initiatives to diversify staff to programs to diversify membership and governance, all are making a dif ference. And all stem from the realization that a difference is required.

Take, for example, the experience of Philip Peach, CAE, executive director of the Portland-based Oregon Lodging Association (OLA). "We realized by the mid-'80s that sheer numbers required reaching out to minority owners," he says. "The Asian-American community is a major stakeholder in terms of hotel and motel ownership in Oregon. It was clear that we had to do everything possible to reach out to them as we would any other potential members. Asian-Americans now exceed 10 percent of our membership."

The wake-up call for the Chicagobased American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) came about eight years ago. "I became CEO in late 1991," recalls Tom Dolan, CAE, "and the question that I faced was: How do we encourage and advance diversity?" At the time, ACHE knew the age and gender of members, but not their ethnicity, and that was a sensitive question to ask. "Someone might be concerned about being discriminated against in some way," Dolan says. "I decided to take that risk."

ACHE began asking the question and seeing the racial breakdown of the membership. Then, partnering with a minority organization, the National Association of Health Services Executives (NAHSE), Silver Spring, Maryland, Dolan conducted a study of the career patterns of white members versus black. "We didn't like the findings," Dolan says. "That's when we embarked on a few activities."

One of them was to establish, along with NAHSE and two other associations, the Institute for Diversity in Health Management, Chicago. ACHE and NAHSE joined with the American Hospital Association and the Association of Hispanic Healthcare Executives to found an organization committed to increasing the number of ethnic minorities in health services administration and improving opportunities for professionals of all ethnicities and races in the health care field.

Efforts to emulate

The out-there associations that have been involved in diversity can offer ideas to get you started with inclusiveness efforts, large or small. Following are only program highlights; feel free to contact these groups for additional information. The mail addresses shown are those of the executives who provided information on behalf of their organizations.

Diversifying staff. When recruiting, the American College of Healthcare Executives (tdolan@ache.org) advertises positions in publications and on Web sites that are focused on diversity. During orientation, new employees see a presentation on the importance of inclusiveness. The association also sends a monthly e-mail to all employees that tries to sensitize them to various cultural holidays and activities that are going on in their city. Plus, ACHE holds periodic all-staff training on diversity issues.

Girl Scouts of the USA, New York City (mist@girlscouts.org), is another organization that recruits extensively in diverse settings. This includes participaring in job fairs for targeted groups and discussing job opportunities with a multicultural network that includes the Organization of Chinese Americans and the National Hispanic Leadership Institute. The results of these recruitment strategies are impressive: Of the 444 Girl Scouts employees, almost half are from underrepresented population groups. Of these 204 staff, 136 are African-American, 48 are Hispanic, 16 are Asian/Pacific Islander, and 4 are American Indian.

The American Psychiatric Association (jschiavo@psych.org) works deliberately to attract diverse employees, especially in upper-level jobs. Its equal employment opportunity policy is totally inclusive, addressing race and national origin, along with age, gender, religion, lawful political affiliation, handicaps, marital status, and sexual orientation.

The American Red Cross (haywardd@usa.redcross.org) has several programs in place, including paid internships that target college students of racial and ethnic minority backgrounds. Alumni are recruited as paid and volunteer staff.

To create a talent pool for filling key staff leadership vacancies, another program targets women and racial and ethnic minorities who are currently holding supervisory to mid-management-level paid and volunteer positions. This group has potential, with development, to advance to positions of higher responsibility.

Forums incorporated into quarterly diversity management committee meetings bring the Red Cross senior leadership team together to discuss diversity issues and progress toward goals.

Plus, a Diversity Ambassador Award honors paid and volunteer staff who demonstrate significant personal commitment to inclusiveness. Recipients are awarded $1,000.

As a federal contractor, the American Psychological Association (irivera @apa.org) is required to have an affirmative action plan. The plan tracks the number of women and ethnic minority employees who apply for jobs and who are hired, promoted, transferred, and terminated. Ethnic minorities represent about 38 percent of the association's workforce. When compared to the statistics showing availability of ethnic minorities for the types of positions available at the association, the representation of ethnic minorities within its workforce is very favorable.

To ensure fairness in compensation, the association conducts extensive salary analyses. These help prevent significant salary differences among white, ethnic minority, female, and male staff in similar positions.

Making membership more inclusive. The office of ethnic minority affairs at the American Psychological Association promotes recruitment, retention, and training of ethnic minority members. Several of the many programs sponsored by this office concentrate on psychology education, with the intent of bringing more minorities into the profession.

One such program assists graduate schools in identifying ethnic minority students who have excelled in undergraduate studies. Another focuses specifically on American Indians, encouraging them to consider a career in psychology. Plus, the Suinn Minority Achievement Award recognizes graduate psychology programs that demonstrate excellence in recruiting, retaining, and graduating minority students.

A commitment to reach more girls from minority groups was behind the launch of several Girl Scouts of the USA programs. One initiative begun in 1996 addresses the needs of girls living on the U.S.-Mexican border. About 10,000 girls now participate. Through their involvement in the Girl Scouts, they learn about such things as sports, dancing, hygiene, health, and the dangers of drug use.

To increase its relevancy to AfricanAmerican girls, a local Girl Scout office in Detroit sponsored a trip to Ghana, West Africa, in which 18 youths (17 African-American) participated. In Chicago, two African-American sisters who are longtime volunteers organized an African-American Girl Scout dance group. Plus, Girl Scouts of Chicago planned a five-day trip to Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; and Atlanta. Girls participating in this Learning From the Past Heritage Tour visited various sites of significance to the AfricanAmerican culture.

The American Red Cross establishes formal working agreements with ethnic-minority-serving organizations in areas of mutual interest and goals. These collaborations have led to increased participation of racial and ethnic minority groups. The most recent agreement was signed in November 1999 with the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, the umbrella organization for Historically and Predominantly Black Colleges and Universities. This agreement opens doors to the 400,000 members of HBCU's student body, faculty, administrators, and alumni to increase their involvement in Red Cross activities.

The national office of the Red Cross recognizes excellence on behalf of its local units in promoting diversity and reaching various populations, then provides financial support for replication of these model programs throughout the organization. In addition, matching funds up to $5,000 each are granted to Red Cross units wishing to develop innovative programs and services that promote diversity outreach in customer service.

Adding racial and ethnic representation to leaderShip. The American Society for Quality (elange@asq.org) recently created a diversity board model to address the organization's leadership makeup. As this article went to press, ASQ's board planned to review the model in May.

Attention to board makeup led the Oregon Lodging Association (phil @oregonlodging.com) to elect an AsianAmerican president in 1997-a firsttime and proud event for OLA, says Philip Peach. The election "probably turned a few heads," he says, noting that his association was one of the first in the nation to have an Asian-American president. "And we now have a second Asian-American moving up the chairs." The result has been increased participation by Asian-Americans in OLA's membership and at the annual conference and other events.

The Girl Scouts, too, have elected a minority leader. The national organization's first Asian-American president (serving since October 1999) presides over a governing body that was reconfigured last fall to reduce the number of members and increase their diversity. Now, African-American, Asian-American, American Indian, and Hispanic communities all have significantly more representation on the board than before.

Helping members reach diverse audiences. The Institute for Diversity in Health Management (housed at the American Hospital Association; revans1 @aha.org) developed a searchable Web database to offer its membership of health care organizations a pool of qualified and diverse job candidates. Through planned enhancements to the Web site, minority candidates will be able to access networking and mentoring tools. More than 100 health care organizations have listed positions on the site, and the number of job candidates has grown to almost 800.

In another effort to help its members with their diversity efforts, the institute will sponsor in June its second annual leadership conference, Diversity Works: Strategies for Success. The conference is designed for trustees, senior executives, human resource officers, corporate diversity specialists, and other leaders promoting inclusiveness in the health care workplace.

The institute has many initiatives aimed at education, including one in which the institute partners with health care organizations throughout the country to increase the participation of minority students in post-graduate fellowships.

Before you get started . . .

As good as they are-and as necessary as they are-for your association, diversity efforts can falter if handled improperly. Key points to keep in mind as you bring your association up to speed with the requirements of our changing society include: Tread bravely and persistently, but with sensitivity. Not everyone on your organization's staff and board may appreciate what you're trying to accomplish. The most effective means for enlightening people, say several executives, is to present them with a business case for diversity.

Susan Darrow recalls that when the board of Association Forum of Chicagoland began talking about diversity, several board members questioned the need to discuss it. "One felt it was enough just to follow all the laws and not discriminate," she says. "But once we got into a discussion about opening access and removing barriers, everyone seemed to engage in the dialogue. The best way for us to address the issues was to make the case that embracing and managing diversity is good business and can only help improve the association."

Debbera Hayward agrees and goes on to note another reason for making the business case: "An early challenge for us was distinguishing between equal employment opportunity, affirmative action, and diversity. Linking diversity to what we called 'the business of the Red Cross' was effective in clarifying differences."

Emily Lange reports a related challenge: "reassuring staff and volunteers that we aren't establishing quotas by setting goals. Addressing that issue directly has helped increase the understanding of the purpose and intent of our diversity initiative."

"There's always a concern that diversity has to respect everybody-- even the majority," mentions Tom Dolan from his experience in training staff. People will take a more positive approach toward diversity if all racial and ethnic groups are acknowledged and valued, not only the smallest ones.

And in thinking about all groups, it's essential to understand that there is a lot of diversity within each one, Dolan emphasizes. "A good example is that there are many cultures in the Hispanic community. You've got to spend the time to learn about each particular culture."

One of the most important points to keep in mind, according to Dolan, is that diversity is the responsibility of the chief executive officer, chief operating officer, and human resources department. "I hope that in some respects my staff recognizes my personal commitment and sees me as the chief diversity officer," he says.

And he has these words for other CEOs: "This work is not something that you delegate. You have to put your heart and soul into it."