Sharing demographic information about organizational leadership is essential to improving equity – in the work of funders and grantees alike. Candor and transparency about staff and board diversity, no matter what the results show, create an opportunity for meaningful discussion and mutual understanding.
To that end, Archstone Foundation seeks a comprehensive and accurate picture of those seeking our funding and receiving our support. Our grantmaking is focused on ensuring that future systems of care reduce disparities by meeting the needs of historically marginalized people and being culturally and linguistically appropriate. Knowing the backgrounds of those serving older Californians and their caregivers helps answer this important question: Do they represent the beneficiaries of their efforts, or is there still work to do?
When the Foundation decided to be among the first organizations embracing the Demographics via Candid initiative a year ago, we explained our desire to lead by example and encouraged all the organizations we fund (or might fund) to do likewise. As an added benefit for groups who create a Candid profile and annually update the races and ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, and disability statuses of their staff and board members, we will accept that information without requiring additional work (data entry) on our grant application. We believe this will not only enhance organizational governance but also make our grantmaking more equitable and improve care for older Californians.
More than 160 funders nationwide have made the same commitment. And as more nonprofits embrace their important role in this effort by entering accurate and complete information in Candid’s system, even more funders are sure to follow.
Candid has several resources to guide the process, including a demographic survey guide with best practices, step-by-step instructions for collecting and reporting data, and a mini-course on why this effort matters and how to get started.
Are You In?
Because we will not ask others to do what we are not willing to do ourselves, Archstone Foundation annually shares the demographics of who we are. Our next update will be posted in July.
The number of organizations disclosing their diversity data has soared to nearly 70,000 nationwide.
Nonprofits reporting demographic data to Candid
Being able to compare such demographics among likeminded organizations can shed light on their part of the nonprofit world. When we first checked early last year, 56 percent of our grantees had posted some demographics on Candid; by the end of the year, the figure was 71 percent. This month, it was almost 80 percent.
While pleased with that steady increase, we have a way to go. Still, we can now begin comparison benchmarking in search of patterns and potential gaps – and then have conversations with grantees about possible opportunities to increase diversity across a range of factors.
A Story Ready to Be Told
We are intentional about operating, and making grants, in ways that help society become more just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive. We want to gain visibility on matters of equity and uplift the work of diverse-led organizations.
Ultimately, we hope demographics will eventually further our understanding of how aging intersects with race, sexual orientation, gender, and geography. The data can help us understand the challenges our applicants and grantees face. We hope someday to have similar data about the beneficiaries of our funding, so we can better address disparities among older Californians. Such information would help us make better, more impactful decisions.
We understand it’s a team effort. Analyzing data and sharing it with the Foundation board has prompted us to think deeply about how we can center equity in our work. My colleagues on the program staff have realized they have an opportunity to talk more explicitly, in the initial stages of the grantee application process, about the benefits of reporting information on Candid.
The Next Challenge
Understanding the demographics of the population served by prospective grantees would help us apply our Three Ts strategies for improving coordination of care – promoting teams, enhancing training, and improving technology – and use a JEDI lens in our grantmaking.
Our initial question a year ago was: Do we know if the rich diversity of California’s older population is being reflected in the people who operate and govern organizations seeking our funding? It is clear this will take time to answer, but embracing Demographics via Candid is a good starting point toward the answer.
And so, we have these calls to action.
To philanthropy: Let’s stop asking nonprofits to enter demographic data over and over, each time they apply for funding. Encourage them to create a Candid profile instead. It will make grantmaking more efficient for funders and beneficiaries alike.
To community nonprofits: Let your voice be heard - start improving your stories by being transparent. Update your Candid profile and continue learning as much as you can about the demographics of the people you serve. You may be surprised to learn your efforts are not reaching as diverse a population as you’d hoped. But the data will empower you to get there.
