Dina Boonstra: "We too have a way to go"

You don't get ingrained habits, unconscious manners and ingrained prejudices out of people just like that. But: when it comes to diversity and inclusion, you have to do everything you can. That is the opinion of NOM director Dina Boonstra, who realizes that her organization still has a long way to go.

NOM conforms with heart and soul to TechLeap's goals, which include promoting the number of investments in a diverse target group. ''It is shocking to see how little of the total investment money in the Netherlands goes to startups that are not white and or women. Of course we have to do something about that. For the health of society, but also because we are convinced that we are missing opportunities because we simply don't have many promising startups in the picture.''

It's a challenge with a capital U. ''What can we do? Keep hammering on about the pitfalls, but most of all the benefits of diversity. This is one of those topics that must not disappear from the agenda. It is not a problem that you just solve, put a check mark on, and move on. We know that. You have to change habits, the culture, processes. That's tricky, it takes time.''

Other cultures difficult to bring in

Some goals are easier to achieve than others. That one-third of investment managers should be women has long been achieved within NOM, for example. Two of the five members of the Supervisory Board are women. Also nice. Young people have been recruited to get more age diversity. Good steps on a long road.

''More difficult is bringing in other cultures, it turns out. We employ a few people from other backgrounds, but would love to have more. Apparently we have not yet found the right way to find them. Or the organization is not yet sufficiently set up. So we need to talk about it, especially with the people themselves. Listening to their wishes and needs. Being creative and finding new entrances. And that's what we do.''

What can the director himself do? ,,Encourage that we organize round tables, that there are webinars, a booklet, meetings. All to make and keep the subject important, but also to learn from it ourselves. We all suffer from blinders, in a sense. So you have to be open to tough questions and good ideas, from as wide an audience as possible. I am very happy with the active club within NOM that continuously draws attention to this subject. It has to.''

In her own career, she noticed how her own contribution to team diversity turned out positively. She wants to pass this on to her colleagues in the MT. She sees it as her role to create a challenging, inspiring and safe working environment for everyone. A diverse team starts with an inclusive leader. I think it's my job to always show the added value.''

For Dina Boonstra, the personal commitment is also and especially in tapping into new networks, in asking for advice, in trying to approach things from different angles. ,,We are always looking for promising startups that we can help move forward. But the proportion of white males is far too high. So we have to look for the talents in a different way. For example, I have asked around in the soccer world. Successful former pros sometimes invest in young companies, and these are usually entrepreneurs we don't have on our radar.''