A nonprofit organization is only as strong as its board of directors. However, in a recent study on nonprofit executive leadership, Daring to Lead, published by San Francisco-based CompassPoint and the Meyer Foundation, researchers discovered that only one in three nonprofit executive directors strongly agree that their staffs view their organization’s board as an engaged leadership body. A nonprofit’s investment in strengthening its board will result in an organization that is well-positioned to meet the needs of the community it serves.
One of the first steps toward building a strong board is investing in effective recruiting. According to Mollie Collins, chair of the Impact100 Sonoma board’s governance committee and former board member of the University of California Berkeley Foundation, Guide Dogs for the Blind, and Marin Education Fund, nonprofits should “look to identify potential new board members who have passion and shared values for the mission; have experience in serving on other boards; and have expertise or skills in one or more areas of professional or volunteer leadership that will add to the goals of the organization.”
Whether it’s the organization’s executive director, the board president, or a board governance committee that does the recruiting, it is important for the recruiters to ask themselves the following questions in selecting new board members: What gaps in expertise currently exist on the board? Who is likely to be a champion for the mission of the organization? What types of contributions do we expect from a new board member? Is our organization a good fit for this particular individual at our stage of development as an organization and at this stage of the individual’s life? How can involvement with our organization benefit the prospective board member? An individual’s board involvement must be beneficial both to the organization and to the individual.
Another way to build a successful board is to engage the board members in a candid, robust self-assessment of the board’s practices. During a recent meeting of the Sonoma Valley nonprofit executive directors, Annie Bacon, executive director of Seeds of Learning, commented, “We have a board self-assessment that we do every year.” She also said that after engaging in this year’s self assessment, her board members selected three process goals and three program goals to address, based on the lowest scoring areas of the assessment. She added, “We found this method to be more effective and, people use it more than the 15-page strategic plan that sat on the shelf in the past.”
Areas to address in a comprehensive board assessment frequently include the following: (1) clarity of the board’s understanding of the differences between its roles and responsibilities and those of the staff; (2) how the board establishes policies; (3) the planning processes in which the board engages; (4) the board’s fiscal management responsibilities; (5) the board’s role in fundraising practices; (6) board structure and governance practices; (7) existence and effectiveness of board committees; (8) productivity of board meetings; (9) board composition and orientation; (10) the relationship between the board and the executive director; (11) ways that the board evaluates the programs and services of the organization; and (12) the board’s role in external relations.
Successful boards understand the clear line between the role of the board and the role of the organization’s staff and do not cross that line. It’s been said that the board steers the boat while the staff rows the boat. Kimberly Blattner, president of the La Luz Center board of directors and former board member of Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Docent Council, and the League of Women Voters of Sonoma County stated, “Many well intentioned nonprofits develop problems because they blur the lines between the responsibilities of their boards and that of their staff. The board of directors determines the mission, the strategic direction, and programming of the organization. The board ensures adequate human and financial resources for the staff to implement the programs set forth by the board to meet the mission.”
Many experts on nonprofit board development agree that the following are the appropriate roles and responsibilities of a well-functioning board: (1) establish broad-based organizational policies; (2) develop a strategic plan for the organization; (3) select the executive director and delegate to him/her the authority to manage the organization’s day-to-day operations; (4) take responsibility for the financial well-being of the organization, including raising funds and managing investments; (5) maintain communications with the organization’s stakeholders; (6) ensure evaluation of progress toward goals; and (7) continually evaluate the board’s processes and composition.
The boards of Sonoma Valley’s nonprofits are filled with altruistic and experienced individuals who are deeply concerned about the needs of the community. By better understanding their roles and responsibilities, board members will be better prepared to face the challenges and rewards of board service.
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