Results Indicate Slight Progress,
Room for Improvement
Situated in a global economy, amid grave
economic circumstances, associations
face a tall order when it comes to achieving diversity. Association leaders must
work to not only serve the needs of an
increasingly diverse membership, but they
must also understand the demographics
that make up their organizations.
As part of the Association Forum of
Chicagoland’s five-year commitment to
diversity in the association community,
the Forum’s Workforce Development &
Diversity Committee — chaired by Robert
Nelson, MBA, CAE, FACHE, vice president
of business development and strategy for
the American Health Information Management Association — prepared the 2009
Diversity Survey to assess associations’
diversity efforts and demographics. The
results were presented in the June/July
2009 issue of FORUM. This year’s survey
polled 2,630 members with 708 members
responding. The results were compared to
survey results from 1998 and 2003 in order
to provide a benchmark against which
to measure the slightly changing demographics of association professionals.
While demographics were measured,
individual perceptions or experiences
regarding diversity were not. Overall, the
results revealed a “status quo,” perhaps
indicating a need to better understand the
challenges that associations face in diversifying their workforces. The survey results
produced a few key findings about the state
of diversity in the association community:
• There was a noticeable increase in the
number of African-American, Asian and
multi-racial members who responded
to the survey. In 2009, these respondents combined to equal 13 percent of
respondents — an increase from 4 percent in 1998 and 7 percent from 2003.
• The percentage of women responding
to the 2009 survey represented a considerable increase from 1998 and 2003.
In 2009, 73 percent of the respondents
were women, compared with 57 percent
in 1998 and 64 percent in 2003.
The survey also indicates that although
there is slight progress in some associa-
BY KELLY E. SLAY
tions, there is still a great deal of work to
be done. Although there was an increase
in the number of respondents who identified themselves as African-American or
black, the percentage of this group holding CEO-level positions was only 3 percent — a significant decrease from the 16
percent in 2003.
“The good news is that
the ‘needle’ is moving
in demonstrating
shifting diversity of
association leaders in
terms of demographics.
Chicago associations
still don’t reflect the
regional population
demographics and there
is much work to do.”
Participation in the survey is another area
of concern. The response rate for the current survey was 27 percent — a decrease
from 1998 and 2003, response rates were
45 percent and 39 percent, respectively.
In fact, results of the 2009 organizational
survey component suggest that only 30
percent of associations include diversity in
their strategic plans.
“The good news is that the ‘needle’
is moving in demonstrating shifting
diversity of association leaders in terms
of demographics. Chicago associations
still don’t reflect the regional population
demographics and there is much work
to do,” Nelson says. “Also, workforce
development and diversity issues span
well beyond demographics. We have to
be mindful not to simplify this important
and complex topic or to rely only on this
indicator.
However, the first step in an improvement process is awareness and measurement followed by action. Clearly, the work
is not done and there are many opportunities and challenges ahead for us to
continue to champion as association
leaders.”
Forum’s Workforce Development &
Diversity Committee is considering future
research that will delve deeper into the
diversity challenges that organizations
and associations face. The committee
also is exploring a formal diversity training program and an annual criteria-based
diversity awards program. It is also committed to strengthening current initiatives, such as the biannual Diversity
Summit, which is devoted to numerous
diversity workshops, and the Workforce
Diversity Scholars program, a leadership
development program for association
professionals from underrepresented
populations.
“This survey comes at an exciting time in
the American experience with diversity,”
Nelson says. “We know we have come a
long way and we have much more work to
do. Associations, of all organizations, given
their pervasive impact and involvement in
workforce and social issues, are definitely
among communities that can make meaningful impact through example.”
Kelly E. Slay is specialist, students and young
professionals, for the Illinois CPA Society, a
member of the Workforce Development & Diversity
Committee and a 2008-09 Association Forum
Workforce Diversity Scholar. She may be reached
at slayk@icpas.org.
For more information about the
2009 Forum Diversity Survey or the
Workforce Diversity Partnership,
contact Forum Workforce Diversity
Manager Nicolas Bailey at
bailey@associationforum.org
or (312) 924-7043.
