Recruiting Board Members

By Colleen de Keratry, Petrus Senior Consultant

An active board is a powerful force in shaping the strategic direction of a non-profit. Recruiting and engaging good board members is an ongoing issue of great importance for all non-profits. The first step? Recruiting. As you think about recruiting your first board or reinvigorating the existing group with new members, keep the following points in mind.

Be intentional about the value a potential board member will bring to the group. Often, non-profits recruit board members as a way to “bring them closer” to the organization, with the hope that John Doe will then make a big gift to the organization or will give the organization increased credibility simply because of his name. Those are not bad things. But they’re also not good enough reasons to ask someone to be on your board. The first step in board recruiting is determining why you need board members. Think about the strategic direction of the organization. Where are you right now? Where do you need to go? What skill sets will the journey require? Who do you know – and who knows you – that has such skills?

Sometimes specific areas of expertise are critical. For instance, if your non-profit is looking to expand its facilities, you might need someone with knowledge of real estate or construction. Do you hope to increase programming or fundraising activities in a particular area of the country? Someone who lives in that region could be invaluable.

And what about the many facets of business that are so important to growing a healthy non-profit: financial analysis, efficiency in systems, staff accountability? Board members who have experience in these areas can be active participants in shaping a vibrant future for an organization that draws out these talents.

Make sure each board member has a passion for the mission of your organization – for whatever reason. High-impact board members are those who believe the work of the organization is important, not simply that a role on your board is prestigious or fulfils a requirement by their employer. This cannot be overstated. If a passion for the work exists, the person will be much more willing to get involved as a member of the board, attend meetings, participate in discussions, do legwork on pertinent issues, advocate on behalf of the non-profit and ask others to support the organization financially. What are you really looking for here? Someone who WANTS to be on the board and can use his or her skills to make a positive impact.

Embrace diversity. People of different backgrounds offer various perspectives and help non-profits more thoroughly assess issues. Diversity is not limited to gender or race, either. Occupation, community involvement, connection to the non-profit and age are important as well. When people of diverse backgrounds serve on your board, your non-profit reaps benefits.

Seek people who are good listeners, ask thoughtful questions and are committed to finding and implementing solutions. Board members are not staff, and should not be involved in decisions about where to hang picture frames or which staff members have designated parking spaces. By contrast, board members should help guide the strategic direction of the non-profit and offer solutions and assistance in helping the organization reach its destination. For instance, a board might very well determine that creating more parking spaces for Sunday Mass attendees is critical to the future of the Center. How should that happen? What is involved? To identify that issue and begin tackling it, you want people on your board who listen to the reports you give as well as to their fellow members’ ideas. You want people who ask probing questions. And you want people who are not looking for a forum to vent their frustration about everything that is wrong with the traffic pattern in the city, but instead draw out ideas to generate a solution.

Sit down one-on-one with the potential board member to talk about the role. Sincerely describe the time commitment necessary to be a good board member, and ask if that person has enough time to dedicate to the role. According to BoardSource, whose mission is to support building better non-profit boards, it is reasonable to expect a good board member to give 75-100 hours each year to a non-profit.

Ask the candidate to complete a brief board application that can be shared with the Nominating Committee or group charged with vetting potential members. Consider inviting the potential member to a board meeting, or part of a board meeting, to meet the others and see how the board works. As part of the recruitment process or in the application, be sure to address the following questions:

1. Can the candidate meet the fiduciary and legal oversight responsibilities of the board?

2. How has the candidate shown passion for similar organizations (or for yours) in the past?

3. Does the candidate have the time to serve effectively on the board?

4. Is the candidate willing and able to meet the board’s fundraising requirement (and yes, this is imperative)

Capture the finer points of the potential board member’s candidacy, using something like this “Board Recruitment Grid” http://managementhelp.org/boards/recruitment-grid.htm by Carter McNamara to highlight the characteristics offered by potential candidates.

Consider creating and using a written document, no more than 2 pages long, outlining the expectations on the part of both the board member and the non-profit. What is it that each will contribute to the relationship? How will you work together to achieve mutual goals? For board members, this should include promoting the non-profit, contributing to the strategic path of the organization, and fundraising. For the non-profit, it should include making good use of volunteer time, providing information in a timely manner, regular contact with board members by the CEO/ Director, and other ways you can foster a mutually beneficial relationship.

Include fundraising as part of what board members do. This means each must be willing and able to give a monetary gift, and participate in the fundraising process. As stated previously, you will already have sought certain people for their skills and expertise, which may not include asking someone for money. Even so, every board member can somehow participate in the fundraising process. This has to begin with making one’s own financial gift to the non-profit. You may decide to set a minimum threshold for board members. That can be a great idea, and it is often done successfully. You may also decide not to set a minimum gift level. This can work too, but the key is to set the expectation that every board member will make a stretch gift. In short: 100% participation, and at levels significant to each individual. Either way, it must be clearly communicated to candidates as part of the recruitment process and not after. The last thing you want is to bring someone new onto the board and then tell them they’re expected to make a $10,000 annual gift to the non-profit. Nor do you want to have a group of people who are helping guide the strategic direction of the non-profit but have made no gift to the organization. Would you buy stock in a public company whose CEO didn’t himself own shares?

Be prepared to welcome board members as key stakeholders. Especially in the case of advisory boards, non-profits often overlook the value of real discussion and talents offered by board members because the board is merely serving an “advisory” role to the decision-maker. The whole point of recruiting strong board members is to help LEAD the organization. So be prepared to listen and, when possible, accept the recommendations of the people you’ve called upon to share their expertise.

Happy recruiting.