AFP Northwest Arkansas
Chapter Meeting
August 19, 2009
A Quick Survey
 How many serve on a non-profit board?
 1 year
 3-5 years
 5-10 years
 15+ years
Survey
 Were recruited well
 Recruiter
 Explained the mission
 Outlined the responsibilities
 Financial
 Organizational Commitments
 Were not recruited well
 Recruiter
 Assumed a lot
 Used guilt
Survey
 Prior to joining, did you know the executive
director and board chair?
 Did you know whether you could work with them
and that your opinion mattered?
 Does your idea about management fit with the
way the organization operates?
Survey
 Do principal staff provide timely and effective
communication?
 Is their follow-up timely and effective?
 Do they “walk the talk” of the organizational
mission?
Advantage
 Based on your own board experience, you are
uniquely positioned
 To appropriately staff and service your non-
profit board
 To evaluate, understand, and strengthen the
causes of successful boards
 To evaluate, understand, and change the
causes of dysfunction
Purpose for today’s
discussion
 Think and act BEYOND the board agenda or the
volunteer task…
 What can you do – easily – to make the board or
committee as a whole, or even a few individuals
work better?
Mission = Motivation
If you aren’t passionate about the nonprofit’s
mission, the weight of your responsibilities
likely will outweigh the benefits.
Killick Datta, board member
Direct Relief International
Your board should…
 Strive towards representation that reflects your
organization’s constituents
 Be committed to the mission and dedicated to
the success of your organization
 Actively develop an understanding of the
mission, ongoing activities, finances and
operating environment of the organization
Your board should…
 Value diversity and understand the role of
participation and
inclusion
 Demonstrate their personal stake in the
organization through volunteer time, financial
contributions and raising funds externally
So…
If this is what they should be doing,
how do you help assure
that they are motivated to do so?
Four Things
 Lead by example
 Communicate effectively
 Assess individual involvement and satisfaction
 Recognition
Lead by Example
EVERYTHING you do matters; sets the tone
 Starting meetings on time
 Sending agendas and materials out well in
advance
 Being responsive in returning phone calls and emails
 Routinely including and informing the board chair
Lead by Example
EVERYTHING you do matters; sets the tone…
 Not using blame or guilt to motivate
 Making sure all voices and opinions are heard
 Avoiding the “rubber stamp” syndrome or
reputation
 Hiring staff that reflects diversity and inclusion
 Walking the talk of the mission
Remember…
Model the behavior
you want to
see and experience
in the board…
Communicate Effectively
 Clarity
 Any assignment or decision should be clearly
articulated and captured in writing so all
understand responsibilities and expectations
 Consistency
 On overload, human nature responds
positively to repetition and predictability
 Evaluate the timing and look of all
communication
Communicate Effectively
 Persistence
 Easy to simply drop an idea or commitment if
there is “whining” from a few
 Find ways to help the chair or committee
chairs communicate the value and keep
pressure on
 Time
 You have enough when it comes to
communicating with your board. Use it; make it
Assess Individual Involvement &
Satisfaction
 Respect the board as individuals who bring a wealth
of experience and variety of skills to the table
 Make sure roles and responsibilities are clearly
defined
 Identify those few who are “fringe” players and invest
your time and concern to bring them closer; to engage
Recognition
 Be public with your recognition and positioning of
board members.
 Web
 Program book
 Recognition wall
The National Study of Nonprofit Governance Board
Practices in the Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector in
Canada
Conducted by Strategic Leverage Partners Inc. in
conjunction with the Centre for Voluntary Sector
Research and Development
May 2006
Fully Engaged Boards
 Have policies that provide sufficient guidance to
the board, are reviewed on a more regular basis
and are publicly disclosed.
 Are better able to read and understand financial
statements, are required to sit on at least one
committee and require less lead time to carry out
their responsibilities effectively.
 Spend more time on board education and
development, and the person responsible for
briefing the board is effective.
Fully Engaged Boards
 Conduct formal board evaluations and evaluate
their CEOs based on preset criteria.
 Have formal risk management and crisis
management policies and have assigned risk
management and crisis management
responsibilities to a specific individual or group.
 Have a strategic vision for the organization and
have translated their strategic goals into
measurable objectives and benchmarks for the
board to monitor.
Fully Engaged Boards
 Set annual objectives for the board, and the
board or its committees follow a well-delineated
work plan that outlines how the board will
achieve its goals. The work plan becomes the
board’s agenda for the year.
 Spend more time at board meetings in lively
debate of strategic issues.
 Are not dominated by one or two people.
 Operate with a balanced budget.