Animal Welfare Professionals

Updated 4/24 at 2:50pm - Recording now available to watch on-demand!

 
We hope to see you on Monday, April 24, 2023 at 11am PT  for our next Community Conversations call! 

We'll learn all about how to diversity your board and why it matters. Our guest speaker will be Christal M. Cherry, Principal + CEO at The Board Pro. In this session, boards will learn how to work to ground organizational values and recruitment practices so that they are inclusive. They will redefine their roles by accepting accountability for setting the tone with deliberate and strategic action to have an increased presence of people of color on boards.

Learning Outcomes:
✓ Understand why board diversity matters
✓ Identify the characteristics of an inclusive-ready Board
✓ Build a pipeline for diverse members
✓ Locate sources to recruit diverse members
✓ Embrace the value of collective networks in board inclusive culture

Register here for our Monday Community Conversations Calls: maddies.fund/CommunityConversationsRegistration

If you are unable to make it live on Monday, this thread will be updated with the recording and resources so you can watch and share whenever you'd like. After you watch the recording or attend the call live, be sure to complete this April entry form to enter to win a grant: https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-apr23-giveaway.htm

#Diversity,Equity,InclusionandJustice
#OrganizationalManagement
#PeopleManagement(includingVolunteerIntegration)

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Maddie's Pet Forum Admin
Maddie's Fund
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This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

I'm looking forward to this call! 

I was wondering how in-depth you will go into board recruitment tactics? I've been experiencing some struggles with my board regarding this topic. Very recently they have shifted their approach to recruitment to 100% exclude any staff input (including from the Executive Director). I completely acknowledge that an ED/CEO should avoid conflicts of interest and would not have an actual vote when determining if a new member will be welcomed to the board, but as I also understand it, best practice is to use the ED/CEO resources, contacts, and knowledge of the community and organization to identify potential board members that would align with the mission vision and values of the organization.  Also, knowing if a potential board member and ED/CEO will work well together doesn't seem like a bad idea to me either - after all those relationships are CRITICAL to the success of a nonprofit.  

Would love some additional insight into this topic! Thanks. :) 

It sounds like somebody offered a suggestion to some issue that arose or was anticipated, and they accepted it without considering unintended consequences.  Based on my experience having served on a couple of different boards, studied board development over the years, and worked in human resources doing recruiting, that looks shortsighted.

I recommend the entire board get some education on the subject. I'm sure there are free webinars on board development somewhere. Even YouTube has some great stuff! I suggest looking for Board Recruitment.

Of course the ED  and staff would be the best people to offer suggestions for board nominations! That does not at all mean they have a hand in the process, or influence it in any way.  

The process starts with appointing a nominating committee, not with limiting the recruitnent pool (amacks head very hard)!  GOOD LUCK.

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Norma Wallace
Consultant
Writing for Results
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-21-2023 09:19 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: Community Conversations - 4/24/23 - How to Diversify Your Board

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

I'm looking forward to this call! 

I was wondering how in-depth you will go into board recruitment tactics? I've been experiencing some struggles with my board regarding this topic. Very recently they have shifted their approach to recruitment to 100% exclude any staff input (including from the Executive Director). I completely acknowledge that an ED/CEO should avoid conflicts of interest and would not have an actual vote when determining if a new member will be welcomed to the board, but as I also understand it, best practice is to use the ED/CEO resources, contacts, and knowledge of the community and organization to identify potential board members that would align with the mission vision and values of the organization.  Also, knowing if a potential board member and ED/CEO will work well together doesn't seem like a bad idea to me either - after all those relationships are CRITICAL to the success of a nonprofit.  

Would love some additional insight into this topic! Thanks. :) 

I am really looking forward to this call, thank you for providing this topic and discussion!  We currently have open seats on our Board and are actively recruiting new members, and I want to ensure we are representative of our communities and that we have a variety of perspectives, knowledge, and experiences reflected in our leadership. 

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Jane Cornelius
Board President
The Humane Society of Hobart
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Thank you to the 209 people who joined us live for today's call! The recording is now available to watch on-demand. Below you'll find a recap of the agenda and resources shared during the call. Thank you to our incredible speaker, Christal Cherry, for sharing her expertise and contagious energy throughout her presentation. If you missed the call and are taking a deeper dive into your Board, be sure to watch the recording!  I've attached Christal's presentation slides to this post as well. 

Agenda

• Welcome from Hosts
  @Ariel Zhang , Vice President of National Programs, Humane Rescue Alliance, azhang@humanerescuealliance.org  
  - Shannon Roebuck, Executive Director, Bridging Impact, sroebuck95@gmail.com
  
  NOTE: If you had trouble joining, Zoom suggests updating with their latest version.
  https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/4415294177549-Downloading-the-Zoom-desktop-client-and-mobile-app
  
  
• Question of the day:  With all the stress you encounter, what do you look forward to during your day? 

National Updates

• Humane Canada's 2023 Summit for Animals May 2- 4th in Victoria, British Columbia. Register: https://humanecanada.swoogo.com/summit/
• Human Animal Support Services webcast It's Raining Cats and Kittens: How to Save More Feline Lives This Kitten Season, Thursday, April 27 at 5 p.m. CT  Register here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/1016775120933/WN_NMLK-YrQRDO0xqsX-Ah9bA 
  Sign up to get invited to the Human Animal Support Services webinars:  https://www.humananimalsupportservices.org/
• Maddie's Pet Forum Help us create a repository of translated materials in Maddie's Pet Forum! This month, our resource drive focus is on sharing examples of materials that your organization offers in a language other than English.  Upload your resources on this thread and you'll be entered to win a $50 gift card for yourself AND entered to win a $3k grant for your organization! https://maddies.fund/translatedmaterialsresourcedrive
• Maddie's Pet Forum monthly give-away!  Maddie's Fund® is giving away a $3,000 grant each month to one lucky Maddie's® Pet Forum member!  You'll automatically be entered to win each month when you start a new discussion, reply to a new post. More info:  https://chewonthis.maddiesfund.org/2022/11/new-monthly-grant-opportunity/
• Maddie's Fund Monthly Giveaways - Enter here for a chance to win: https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-apr23-giveaway.htm Open to all who are watching live or on-demand! Be sure to enter each week you attend.
  
  

Presentation:  How to Diversify Your Board

Guest Speaker:
Christal M. Cherry, Principal + CEO, The Board Pro, hello@theboardpro.com, 470-222-3292
Author of "Mac and Cheez - Being Different is Okay" - www.macandcheez.com 

Learning Outcomes:
✓ Understand why board diversity matters
✓ Identify the characteristics of an inclusive-ready Board
✓ Build a pipeline for diverse members
✓ Locate sources to recruit diverse members
✓ Embrace the value of collective networks in board inclusive culture

Highlights From The Chat

Answers to the Question of the day "With all the stress you encounter, what do you look forward to during your day?"

• "Running back to the cat or dog room to cuddle with some of my favorites" - @Kim Gorga 
• "Loud, happy music" - @Kathleen Olson 
• "Riding my bike" - @Bobby Mann 
• "Gardening while listening to music with the dogs!" - @Lisa Pearce 
• "My office foster dog!" - @Cecilia Oliveros (she/her)  
• "Spending time with pigs and goats, especially giving my piggies belly rubs" - Cassie Morey
• "Cuddling the cats especially the kittens" - @Beverly Paladinetti 

Other highlights from the Chat

• "Even though you are talking about Boards, these are all best practices for making your organization more inclusive, equitable and diverse!" - @Allison Cardona (she/her/ella) 
• "If you want change, governance is the best way to get it... This happens in capitalism very effectively (for better or worse). This meeting is so important for any non-profit or company." - @Gilberto Gandra 
• "So many good points regarding inclusion and culturally exclusive differences" - @Lisa Pearce  
• "As an Indigenous woman I am annoyed that we are referred to as "other". I want to be counted! haha" - @Jennifer Herne 
• "So many good ideas! We are re-vamping our board development process right now, and I will definitely be sharing with my board leadership." - @Johanna Humbert 
  
  

 

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Kim Domerofski (she/her)
Community Manager
Maddie's Fund
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