30% by 2030
Our Mission
Improve the diversity of boards to 30% by 2030.
The Facts:
60% of boardrooms are ALL MALE.
Fewer than 7% of private-company board seats are held by women.
Racially diverse leaders are underrepresented in C-Suites and on boards today.
There is a strong sentiment that boards must diversify to remain relevant, but most board candidates are sourced through current non-diverse members. It’s a “network” problem.
The Fallacy:
Boards may have to lower their quality standards in order to “check the box” of having diverse board members or have to hire an inexperienced board director.
There aren’t enough highly accomplished and qualified, CxO diverse leaders to choose from, or these people are too difficult to find.
Diverse boards are better boards.
They are 43% more likely to achieve superior financial performance above the national industry norm with revenues 19% higher on average than their counterparts.
Our Story
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July 2017
Fortune100 Banking Company
Made 2500+ warm introductions and built a referral-only network of 1500+ board-ready women through Multicultural Innovation Lab, building a community within this global banking business and 35 prominent firms.
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December 2019
2020 Gender Diversity on Boards
Built and leveraged successful networks with the appropriate community stakeholders and government officials such as 2020 Gender Diversity on Boards to exceed namesake goals and the state government in California requiring for 1+ Women required on Public Board of Directors.
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September 2020
Leading VC
Delivered referral lists for 200+ board seats for a global venture capital firm with over $2B in capital, with investments in leading tech companies across the United States and world.
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October 2020
Multinational Financial Services
Added value as an integrated and essential member of this global financial services partner and set a new precedent for taking companies public: at least one diverse board member.
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November 2020
Launch & CEO Mentor
Create a dedicated Boardswell virtual leadership platform and make it available at no cost to our clients to support rising HPPOC executives. We will also broaden and expand our student mentorship programs across our company to help grow more HPPOC leaders.
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December 2021
Launch
Boardswell was launched by CEO and Founder Sabrina Hannam.
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August 2023
Growth
Boardswell celebrates its 100th successful board placement!
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December 2025
25% by 2025
The emergence of US Board Diversity reports that indicate board diversity has increased to 25% by 2025, showing progress toward our “30% by 2030” vision.
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July 2026
Hiring
Double our HPPOC leadership and hiring of HPPOC colleagues in our company over the next four years. Hiring more women or multicultural LPs, fund managers, partners, or board members.
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December 2027
Supplier Diversity
Double our spending with diverse suppliers within three years.
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January 2028
Funding
Donate a total of $100,000 per quarter in cash to nonprofits working to create educational opportunities, economic empowerment for HPPOC, and racial equity. The majority of this gift will be directed to organizations to be selected by our Boardswell HPPOC Network candidates.
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March 2028
Our Impact
Commit $200 million over the next 10 years in pro bono work to advance racial equity and economic empowerment among HPPOC communities.
Boardswell data points
96%
Recommendation Rate
3,500+
Participants Enrolled
250+
Client Organizations Served
45%
Female Executive Participation
Our Culture
When you break it down, it’s all about our vision.
Transparency
Communicate openly and transparently with our customers and employees. We don't have all the answers and don't pretend that we do, but we provide a vehicle for openly gathering and sharing information.
Nimble
We are motivated by our goal that every exceptional person of color has access to executive roles and board directorship opportunities.
Accountability
We are professionals with the answers, expertise, and solutions you need. We can be counted on to get it done, correctly, the first time. You can trust us to follow through and sweat the details.
Agility
We unite more high premium people of color and sustainable companies that reflect the changing demographics in leadership roles in the nation.
Accessibility
Technology is most robust when it is built to reflect those we're serving. Bridging the digital divide at quarterly invitation-only matching events. Catching up with CEOs at UpStart Talks. Investing in our stakeholders and the champions who are already doing this work at the Board Strategies Leadership Summit. We want everyone to enjoy the serendipity of networking - because often the most significant driver of value is connectivity to our people - so we work to remedy the dearth of opportunity and access to information that keeps so many invisible.
