Throughout the year people have asked me, “Are you having fun yet?” and I am happy to answer, “Yes, I am!” I set out to do work with good people and my position as APA president has allowed me to do just that. This year, I have been very intentional about the internal work that is necessary for APA to continue focusing on institutional change. Over the year, I have urged you to join me in learning about equity, diversity, inclusion, practices of structural competence, structural humility, and advocacy. Establishing equity as a core function of the role of elected and appointed leaders is necessary to create an equitable association.
Thinking about the future of our association has kept me up at night. For the past several decades, various elected and appointed leader groups have sounded a specific alarm: “We are too cumbersome,” “We aren’t nimble,” “We are too siloed and redundant,” and “We are too expensive.” Over the years, many dedicated colleagues have initiated projects aimed at modernizing governance and advisory groups. The most recent effort was the 2019 Policy and Planning Board’s recommendation to reduce the size and diversify the composition of APA’s Council of Representatives. However, proposals to reform existing groups have often faced resistance from stakeholders, who have frequently succeeded in maintaining the status quo. This resistance is understandable, as continuity offers comfort, while the unknown often stirs fear.
Fast forward to today. The association has relied on a model of inclusion by continually adding new groups and not sunsetting outdated groups. By clutching to standing groups and not embracing a project-based model, we now have more than 81 staffed governance and advisory groups (not including divisions!)—an unmanageable number of workgroups for an association of our size. The view from my perch shows me that the continuation of this model threatens the success of the impact we can achieve as mandated in our strategic priorities. Simply put, we have become too inefficient and too expensive to sustain.
In my first column, I confided that I am a “governance wonk” who believes that when we embrace our association’s mission, we must also advocate for our own transformation so that the way we work is aligned with the changes we want to see in our society and the world. In this, my final column, I am sounding the alarm. The time for action is now! We must evolve our governance operations and workflows to reduce redundancies and inefficiencies. APA is primed for organizational transformation that will best position us for future success. This includes fiscal responsibility and alignment with our updated strategic plan and EDI priorities. To summarize, we can’t make the changes we want to see happen without first changing ourselves.
As my presidential year ends, I reflect upon how privileged I have been to be entrusted by you to serve in this capacity. I passionately believe that now is the moment to focus on providing our elected, appointed, and staff leaders with a sustainable framework to realize APA’s mission. By embracing equity, diversity, and inclusion along with best practices from modern governance models, we can maximize societal impact through our expertise in psychological science, practice, training, and education. Together, we have the power to transform and spark institutional change. ¡Sí se puede!—Yes we can!
