10 Ways to Be a Great Board Member
Respond to emails within 1-3 business days.
As a Board Member, you are a leader within the organization. Therefore, it’s important that you take an active role in communicating with the Executive Director, the rest of the Board, and additional staff when appropriate.
Your input is extremely valuable to the Executive Director, as you are ultimately one of the people who they report to and the Board has the authority to fire them if they fail to do their job in a satisfactory manner. If you are striving to be a great Board Member, you should also strive to be responsive to communications.
While you’re at it—cc the rest of the Board. Reply all. While it can be overused and cause unnecessary inbox clutter, “reply all” can also be a tool to build connective tissue between the Board and the E.D. If other board members see you responding to emails in a timely and thoughtful manner, it will model effective communication. Hopefully, it inspires them to rise to the occasion and be just as intentional!
If you are temporarily too busy to respond in a meaningful way, you can send a simple response such as, “Thank you for sending this over. It looks like you put a lot of hard work into this proposal. Give me a week and I will be able to respond with feedback. I look forward to reading!”
What you may not know, if you’ve never worked as an Executive Director, is that the Board has the power to make one feel fully supported or totally isolated. This is directly connected to how much the Board does (or does not) communicate with the Executive Director. So, don’t underestimate the support that you provide with a simple email response.
2. Anticipate your Executive Director’s needs and proactively offer to help.
In the nonprofit sector, especially with nonprofits in years 1-5, it’s usually safe to assume that the Executive Director is juggling A LOT. An inexperienced Executive Director may struggle with overwhelm, prioritization, and/or asking for help.
Instead of waiting for them to come to the Board with cries for help, consider what you may be able to anticipate and offer to help.
For example, in January, many E.D.’s will be busy running donor reports, organizing year-end data, creating donor receipts, finding the contact info of that one person from that one fundraiser who handed them a $100 bill, and finally, addressing, posting, and mailing all of the donor letters.
What are some ways you can offer to help?
“Hi Robyn, happy new year! I figure this month is pretty busy with creating and mailing donor letters? Is there any part of the process that I can take off your plate? For instance, if you run the reports and craft all the letters, I can stuff envelopes, address and mail them for you by the end of the month. Let me know if I can do that for you or if there is something else that I can take off your plate this month!”
Other times of the year that you can anticipate your E.D.’s needs may be:
The end of the calendar year (or end of the fiscal year) - Offer to assist with EOY reporting, working with the accountant to reconcile the past year’s expenses, sharing financial documents with the Board, etc.
Tax deadlines - If you don’t know when your organization’s taxes are due, you need to know. My blog “Everything You Need to Know About Nonprofit Taxes” will help you provide significant assistance to the E.D. during tax season.
Grant deadlines - While the E.D. is probably the best person to write grant applications and/or reports, you can offer to assist with other things during this time.
Annual fundraisers - If your E.D. is passionate about your organization’s success, they will work around the clock to make an annual fundraiser a success. Someone needs to pick up printed materials from the print shop, get ice and put it in the freezer at the venue, gather in-kind donations from local businesses who waited until the last minute to respond to your E.D.’s solicitation, and so much more.
Events and programs - Similar to annual fundraisers, your E.D. wants your programs to go off without a hitch. Get there early and help with setup. Offer to take photos and videos throughout the event for social media. And stay late to help with cleanup.
3. Share your organization’s updates and fundraisers on social media.
This one requires almost no time and it is impactful! It is estimated that in 2023, consumers will require an average of 8 touch points before they purchase a product. This is an increase from the “7 touch points” that marketing professionals have touted for years.
When we think of this in terms of successful donor campaigns, giving days, online merch sales, etc. It is likely that a potential donor needs to interact with your nonprofit 8+ times before they choose to participate in fundraisers.
When board members share about the organization online, it dramatically increases the number of touch points with future participants and donors.
4. Call your Executive Director “just to check-in.”
Feelings of loneliness and isolation plague the nonprofit industry. Executive Directors often navigate complicated problems on a day-to-day basis without help. Calling to check-in is a great way to remind your E.D. that they are not in this fight alone.
It’s one thing to say, “Call me anytime.”
It’s another thing for you to carve out time and make that call yourself.
5. Volunteer to take lead on tasks brought up during board meetings.
It’s common, especially with nonprofits in the startup phases, to use Board meetings to tease out ideas and talk through problems. Inevitably, people will suggest next best steps.
While, this is extremely helpful, it can also be overwhelming. More tasks on an already overloaded plate can trigger anxiety, overwhelm, feelings of burnout, and more.
If you’re able, consider offering to take on the suggested task. For example, instead of saying, “I think it’d be a good idea to reach out to so-and-so and see if they’d split the cost of the venue with us,” try saying, “How do we feel about reaching out to so-and-so to gauge their interest in sharing the cost of the venue with us. If we like that idea, I’d be happy to do the outreach.”
6. Review agendas and attachments prior to Board meetings.
A dense agenda for a board of directors meeting is also a norm for nonprofits trying to get off the ground. These conversations require your input and attention to detail.
Pour yourself a cup of tea, grab a seat by a window, and take the time to thoroughly review the agenda and any attachments you were sent prior to your board meeting.
7. Learn to read financial documents.
These can be overwhelming to read when you first open the file. However, when you dig into them, it’s likely that you’ll recognize most of the terms from basic accounting and/or business courses that you took in college.
If you didn’t take these courses or you didn’t attend university, no worries. Check out this alphabetized list of financial terms for nonprofits.
8. Confidently and accurately share the organization’s mission and vision with potential donors.
Let’s imagine a scenario. You are at a dinner or enjoying drinks with a group of friends. A few of the people you are meeting for the first time.
After inquiring more about their career and passions, you realize that one of them would be a perfect partner and potential sponsor of your organization’s upcoming event. This is the moment, with confidence and accuracy, you need to be able to share the mission and vision of your nonprofit and invite them to engage.
This may look like, “Wow, your company’s work sounds closely aligned with _______. I sit on the Board and we primarily work on _____. Would you mind if I get your contact information so we can stay in touch?”
Simple. As. That.
The impact of this action goes way beyond identifying a new potential funding source for your organization. It also:
Clearly communicates to the E.D. that you are invested in the success of the organization.
Raises the bar for other Board members to take an active role in the organization’s growth and success.
9. Seek out a mentor.
Do you know a current Executive Director? Consider reaching out to them and asking if they would mentor you in how to best show up for your E.D. Some questions you can ask:
How does your Board show up for you?
In what ways do you wish your Board would do more?
In what ways do you wish your Board would step back / give you more autonomy?
What are the most impactful things that Board members have done for you in the past? Provided technical support? Acted as a sounding board for ideas? Taken tasks off your plate? Authored grants?
What steps can I take to build rapport with my E.D.?
10. Connect your E.D. to new funding sources.
Did you learn about a new grant that is a good fit? Send them a link and offer to spend 1-2 hours gathering the information needed to apply.
Attend a cool fundraiser that looks easy to duplicate? Send your E.D. an email and offer to put together a simple budget for proposed execution.
Meet someone with deep pockets whose passions closely align with your organization’s mission? You know what to do.
Your input is valued.
Whether your E.D. expresses it explicitly or not, in the startup phases of a nonprofit, Board members’ input is highly valued and sought after.
By implementing the ten suggestions above, you will grow into an integral part of the organization’s efforts. As well, you’ll be a stronghold for your Executive Director on the days when the work is exhausting.