Four R’s to a great board development process

Milk. It does a body good.

Before "Got Milk", this was the tagline back in the 80's.

Well, I'm taking creative license with the term to suggest that: "Development. It does a B-o-D good", as in board of directors. Okay, maybe I need that license revoked but it's as succinct as I can put such an essential activity.

Over the years I've gotten the sense that the culture of many boards can be classified to range from a collective Wizard of Oz, expected to perform fantastical feats of "magic" (read: income generation), to a herded clowder of cats.

It's not an easy thing, bringing together a group of divergent talents, skills, philosophies, experiences and socio-economic realities to cohesively strategize, oversee and finance the direction, activities and affairs of an entity that can change reality for the constituents it serves. They must function as one unit, all while having sometimes very different orientations as to what should happen and how.

Come to think of it, I've heard it said that boards are the only teams that don't get to practice. So when they choose to act, however thoughtful, there are often no do-overs.

Board service is a very serious commitment. If time is taken to adequately vet a candidate, explain the requirements and train them to do the job exceptionally, their service to your NPO can be transformational.

Board training is ongoing and should be built into your organization's board development activities; yet not too many people understand the truth of what it takes to do it well.

This may be because many executive directors start off with a pretty cavalier attitude about the whole thing even before their organization has been officially sanctioned.  How familiar does this scenario sound to you: ED, discovering they can't file any paperwork without them, makes a few calls to some close friends or family to ask their permission to be listed on the organization's articles of incorporation and 501c3 tax exemption application to the IRS.

These folks willingly oblige, expecting their role is complete, because there may well be little to no discussion as to their involvement with the organization beyond this.  A meeting at some point, maybe, but the details remain undefined--sometimes for way too long.

In my eBook, "Fundraising in Primary Colors: The RYB Framework to Nonprofit Sustainability", I outline the critically important role these "yeomen" (represented in the yellow triangle of the RYB model) perform in promoting, protecting and supporting their organizations.

As dynamic as an organization's evolution needs to be to respond to the ever-changing needs of its constituency, the board must be ahead of the curve, understanding there will always be change and proactively preparing to respond. To do this, they must be groomed; developed; made ready for success:

Recruit well

• Develop a recruitment packet—includes financial information, calendar of important events, commitment letter, orientation schedule, etc.

• Create a nominating committee—this is the most important committee of the board. It works year-round and is chair by a senior level board member to answer the following questions: 1) What is needed to successfully fulfill the NPO's mission, 2) When are the skills needed and 3) Who can fill those needs. The committee includes the ED and community members and is designated to develop a board member recruitment plan, involve prospective members in committees to assess performance.

• Draft job descriptions, commitment letters and conflict of interest statements.

Retain well

• Conduct an orientation- create a "get acquainted" opportunity for the full board, as not only a chance for them to get to know each other but to get to know (or in some cases reinforce) important points about organization, its programs and culture, as well as the board's role and its collective and individual member expectations.

• Host an annual planning retreat— this can include training and work sessions around preparing for how best to achieve and execute strategic plan goals; actions should be assessed at every board meeting to stay on task through the year.

• Develop an effective committee structure—determine what committees are needed based on the board composition, who should chair them, how often they should meet and how to approach work assigned, and what inputs are needed achieve objectives.

• Conduct effective meetings—start and end on time, send agenda in advance, delegate committee work to committees, etc.

• Maintain high performance expectations—check in with members once a year to determine their level of engagement and reward outstanding service

• Establish and adhere to service term limits—as there is a beginning there should be an pre-determined end to board service to encourage participation and keep ideas and energy fresh.

• Clarify board and staff responsibilities—as mentioned earlier, the board sets policy; Staff carries out policy in executing day to day activities.

• Encourage ongoing board training, either in-house or self-initiated.

Reward well

• Show appreciation regularly. Say thank you in a timely and meaningful (to the board member) manner.

Reflect well

Selecting individuals for board service, training them and giving them what they need to work effectively are executive leadership-driven activities, especially with a brand-new organization.

However, once they're in place and functioning (some schools of thought say it takes three years to recruit and build a strong board) and have been guided by an astute ED who knows, appreciates and leverages their individual and collective value, then comes the hard part—reflection and introspection to assess their own performance and level of engagement.

Blazing that trail calls for expanded thinking, focused on the organization's mission and how each individual board member's personal motivations and collective consciousness is reflected in it.

The energy and momentum for this effort can only come from an engaged board, acting deliberately, boldly, thoughtfully and strategically because they know who they are, what their role is and how best to function to meet the outcomes they set for themselves.

If your organization's board is ready to hold that mirror up, there are a number of tools they can use, including this one from the Council of Nonprofits.

Has your organization used a variation of the four R's in its board development process? If so, please share below the tools used and the results you achieved. They could really be helpful.