 | | Good Neighbor Tool Kit: Leading a Charity Leadership and the Board | | ||
|  Nonprofit Nuts and Bolts The Art of Fundraising Recruiting Volunteers and Keeping Them Happy Marketing and Public Relations Leadership and the Board Good Neighbor Tool Kit Main Page Good Neighbor Home Page | How to Put Your Board to Work All that effort of recruiting and cultivating your board will go to waste if you don’t figure out what to do with it. The more you use a good board, the better it will get. Here’s how to get the most out of them: 1. Schedule regular meetings. Plan on having your full board meet at least twice and preferably four times annually. Meeting only once a year won’t allow board members to develop sufficient understanding. But beware: Scheduling too many meetings will invite members to find reasons to skip them. 2. Schedule meetings well in advance. Almost everyone has too little time and too much to do. It’s not unusual for an organization to schedule a full year of board meetings in advance. And be sure to send out reminders just before meetings. 3. Determine convenient meeting times. Different boards have different social dynamics. Discover when the majority of your board members are most available. Breakfast, lunch or dinner meetings? During the work week or on the weekend? 4. Provide agendas and materials related to the business at hand. Inform board members of the major issues to be discussed. Reports and background materials should be distributed in advance so that members have adequate time to review them. 5. Plan meetings that combine business and education. Unless a business agenda is too extensive, try to incorporate material into board meetings that adds to members’ understanding and appreciation of your organization. Schedule presentations on current programs or developing initiatives. Or invite a guest speaker to discuss a topic related to your organization’s service. 6. Schedule a social event in combination with a board meeting. Once in a while, make your board meeting an occasion during which members can socialize over a drink or meal. Give your board members a chance to get to know each other better and develop a sense of camaraderie. 7. Make sure board meetings are run on a professional and orderly basis.
8. Don’t expect every board meeting to be smooth. Boards are “human,” and unanimity isn’t always easily—if ever—achieved.
TIP: Formal minutes of every board meeting should be recorded, usually by the board secretary. Many disputes have been resolved by a review of minutes from prior proceedings. 9. Consider having an annual meeting. Many organizations have a once-a-year event that involves a combination of a board meeting and a more public report on their status. Often, a private board meeting is followed by a more public session in which the organization reports to its members and/or friends. | |