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Nonprofit Board Development & Support

A great nonprofit board puts its arms around, not fingers in, the organization.

After 30+ years working in the nonprofit sector in Canada, I know that the #1 challenge for volunteer boards is that many members do not fully understand their governance roles.

The symptoms of a board that is struggling are all too familiar to many EDs/CEOs.

  • The board has not (yet) clarified what board model they will embrace (hands-on, policy or policy governance) which leads to lack of clarity of member and board responsibilities.
  • Board members may periodically drift into asking operational questions or want to do work that belongs to paid managers.
  • Ironically, at the same time they tend to stray into operations, the board may default its governance responsibilities (for example recruitment of new members) to the executive director/CEO.
  • Executive positions (chair, vice-chair, secretary, treasurer) may be vacant.
  • There may be no planned orientation for incoming members.
  • There may be no up-to-date, written, governance policies that give guidance on how to manage its work.
  • The board may not have written procedures to ensure a fair, robust and properly managed annual performance appraisal of the ED/CEO.
  • There may not have been a review and revision of the bylaws for years or even decades!

If finding ways to fix your board challenges feels like a pretty daunting task, you are in very good company.

Fortunately, transforming a board that is “okay but not great” into a knowledgeable, engaged and truly great board is much easier that you might imagine!

Part of the solution is for the ED/CEO to NOT try to take on the boards duties. As tempting as it may be for the ED/CEO to become a “responsibility magnet”, this has the unfortunate impact of weakening the board’s leadership and creates more confusion about who should be doing what.

Why would board members want to work to get clear on their governance roles when, from their perspective, the ED/CEO is doing great by doing it ALL.

Of course, for the ED/CEO there are just not enough hours in the week to do all the operational work AND all the governance work that rightly belongs to the board.

My name is Paula MacLean and I LOVE working with nonprofit boards and senior managers. I’ve been teaching, coaching, problem solving and supporting paid and volunteer nonprofit leaders in Canada for about 30 years.

Most of our work together is done online (via Zoom calls), with occasional in-person sessions when needed. I live in Southwestern Ontario and was born and raised in the Canadian Prairies. I also work with several very skilled colleagues (all former EDs/CEOs and board volunteers) who provide in-person support to nonprofits in Western Canada.

If you feel like your board could use an energy boost, increase engagement or become more clear on their roles, then we should chat. I’m happy to talk with you to discuss what’s happening (or perhaps what’s NOT happening) in your agency and what some possible solutions are, on our first call for free.

Please click the contact box below to send me a note. I will get back to you in a flash (seriously, I’m known for being very speedy with my communication) to schedule a date and time for a call.

 

The initial exploration conversation of up to 30 minutes by phone/Zoom or email is completely FREE!