Diversity and Inclusion in the Board Room

In C-suites and boardrooms across the globe, diversity and inclusion are quickly evolving from buzzwords and pledges to reality.

While these conversations may be focused on the company, it’s important to remember that the decisions made in these rooms affect everyone involved from the employees of the company, to shareholders who own its shares, and even the economy. With this in mind these meetings are generally extremely structured and adhere to the rules (such as Robert’s Rules of Order) and protocols that ensure that the meeting is conducted appropriately.

Boardrooms are usually designed to accommodate a smaller group of people, generally with 8 to 20 people around a large central table that facilitates face-toface discussion and fosters the feeling of unity. High-quality furniture and technology like advanced audiovisual systems and teleconferencing options will help create an environment that is conducive to productive collaboration.

Discussion boards are a great method to engage students and help them understand the relationship between classroom learning and other perspectives. To encourage student participation instructors can begin by asking icebreaker questions that make students familiar with their classmates’ responses. Speer, at Wichita State, asks her students to make an emoji chain that will define their personalities and their interests. Students then read the responses of their peers, and then reply. Highlighting a discussion’s the most important ideas get redirected here and themes stimulates students to be attentive to the entire forum.