The Diversity Recruiting Maturity Model

The DRMM team left to right: Jackye Clayton, Joe Gerstandt, myself (Stan Kimer) and Katee Van Horn. Not pictured: Julie Sowash

Last week I attended the one-day “HireConf conference” in New York City with a small team of diversity consultants and practitioners to present a new piece of work in progress called the “Diversity Recruiting Maturity Model,” or DRMM for short.

So four questions:
1) Who was on this team?
2) What is a maturity model?
3) What is in the Diversity Recruiting Maturity Model?
4) How do I get more details and resources?

1. Who was on the team?
• Jackye Clayton of HiringSolved, (the company that was the lead organizer of this conference,) formed and led the team. Earlier this year she sought out a diverse small team of various diversity and inclusion consultants.
Joe Gerstandt, a speaker, author and consultant who has worked with a huge variety of large and small clients on diversity and inclusion efforts.
• Julie Sowash, Senior Consultant with Disability Solutions, focusing on implementation and programs to support the hiring of people with disabilities.
• Katee Van Horn, founder and CEO of “VH Included” with a focus on diversity and inclusion solutions that leverage the creativity of an organization’s people.
• And myself, Stan Kimer of Total Engagement Consulting by Kimer. I handle all areas of diversity consulting and training, but have a deep expertise in LGBTQ+.

Oct 22 was gray drizzling day in New York City, but the Hireconf conference inside was hot and engaging!

2. What is a maturity model? A maturity model is a set of structured levels that depict the organizational behaviors, practices and processes that reliably and sustainably produce required outcomes. (Hammond, Bailey, Boucher, Spohr & Whitekar, 2010.) Since its initial introduction, many professionals have realized that the maturity model structure can be applied to practically any kind of business or organizational issue or process. Hence, we applied the maturity model to Diversity Recruiting.

With the fast-paced shift in American demographics and the labor market, all organizations need to have a strong diversity recruiting process to identify and hire the best talent so they can thrive in the decades ahead.

The team presenting the Diversity Recruiting Maturity Model to an engaged and appreciative audience


3. What is the Diversity Recruiting Maturity Model? Our model includes four steps, each with a set of strategies and tactics that organizations should develop and implement to move ahead:
Initiate – realizing the strategic importance of diversity recruiting and starting to take action.
Implement – developing the initial strategy, and then executing several core steps to recruit and retain diverse talent.
Iterate – moving to strong set of processes that can be repeated and built upon.
Inspire – being a leader in diversity recruiting and sharing best practices within the industry.

4. How do I get more details and resources? The team published a comprehensive 30-page resource that include the details of the four maturity model steps, a self-assessment scorecard, case studies, inclusive leadership information, and resources for recruiting various diverse candidates (women, LGBTQ, people with disabilities, etc.) It is a large file, so email me, Stan Kimer at [email protected] and I will send you a link to download it.

Feel free to contact Jackye for assistance with talent acquisition or any of us for consulting or training around diversity inclusion via our website links included earlier this blog.

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NOTE: Here is a link to a Youtube video summary of the conference from the HireConf “Hirecast” team. The DRMM is talked about from 6:00 t0 8:28 in the Hirecast.

An innovative business serving small enterprises and non-profits: My Change Agent

“My Change Agent” founders Carolyn Naseer (right) and Erin Spencer

One very cool part of my consulting practice is getting to network with a diverse set of interesting professionals who are doing innovative and impactful work in a variety of ways. And I continue to enjoy publishing “interview blogs” to highlight these cool people and their work.

In this blog, I interview Carolyn Naseer, co-founder of “My Change Agent,” which is serving non-profits and small businesses that normally don’t have access to this level of excellent strategic and operational management resources.

STAN: Could you tell me a little bit about “My Change Agent?” What is your business all about?

CAROLYN: My Change Agent is a management consulting firm. Our entire mission is to help solve problems for small businesses, nonprofits, and universities. Our teams work across a variety of divisions – everything from Human Resource operations to Public Health Administration, but most recently, our focus has been on supporting nonprofits on diversifying donor streams, building equity and inclusion into their HR policies, and creating business infrastructure.


STAN: I know in the past you’ve worked in academia, as well as in industry – everything from start-ups to large organizations like me (both of us at IBM). What motivated you to now strike out on your own?

CAROLYN: My Change Agent was launched in April 2018 and my business partner, Erin Spencer, and I joke that it was our “brain child”. We realized that we had an opportunity to really impact our communities through a model called a flash organization (also referred to as a “pop-up employer”). Basically, teams are assembled to work on projects, and then disband after a project is completed. We really believe in the power of collaboration and thought that if we could apply this model to organizations that don’t have access to big business resources, we could have a much larger impact (in many ways).


STAN: You are now offering this innovative Capacity Building Consortium. Can you tell me more about what this is?

CAROLYN: The Capacity Building Consortium is a membership-based model for nonprofits of any size and is designed to: 1.) create more efficient business processes; 2.) increase staff health and well being, and 3.) offer training and development opportunities. Examples of what members actively work on include: creating an action plan to diversify donor streams, a documented succession plan, a process for managing volunteers, and compliance with Human Resource regulations. Most importantly though, we are freeing up more time for to proactively serve their mission.


STAN: Why did you decide to offer this Capacity Building Consortium? Is it filling a particular niche or unaddressed need?

CAROLYN: Sound business infrastructure is necessary for any nonprofit to be sustainable. Over time, however, we saw there was a huge gap in affordable resources for nonprofits to continuously work on capacity building. The Capacity Building Consortium grew out of this need, and is a low-commitment, low-cost option. We enroll cohorts quarterly, membership is a month-to-month basis, and members walk away with tangible processes every month.


Carolyn Naseer visiting with the staff of The Farm at Penny Lane, one of the many non-profits Carolyn is involved with. Link to my blog about the farm.

STAN: I also know you are quite an active person. What else are you involved in besides your “My Change Agent” business?

CAROLYN: I’m smiling as my community work is so meaningful to me personally! First, my business partner and I do a lot of philanthropy through our business. We donate time and resources to organizations who we strongly believe in their mission. In addition, I sit on multiple Boards, and am currently the President of the Triangle Society for Human Resource Management and also am on the Board of Directors for CommunityWorx (formerly PTA Thrift Shop in Carrboro, NC). In addition, I am an active volunteer for the American Red Cross and am trained in Disaster Relief Services as well as volunteer in their Services to the Armed Forces Division.

STAN: Thank you, Carolyn. I continue to enjoy our periodic lunches sharing about how our business lives and other pursuits are going. And I wish you and Erin the very best of success in this business venture!


To contact Carolyn and to learn more about My Change Agent:
Website: https://www.mychangeagent.co/
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: 919-729-6106