Volume 15 Number 3 • 2002
Board Development & Recruitment Strategy
by Cary Griffin, Director of Special Projects at the Rural Institute
Most not-for-profit organizations struggle with
maintaining an active, engaged, and intelligent Board of Directors.
While there are no shortcuts to the “perfect” non-profit
board, there are tried and true strategies that work. These take
time and effort, but in the long run the effort pays for itself.
Great boards do not just happen. Strategy and work are behind
every high performance board. When many agencies recruit board
members, they simply look for bodies willing to serve, or find “resume-builders” in
the community interested in gaining local recognition. Some of
these folks turn out to be surprisingly talented; many do not.
Board recruitment is similar to staff recruitment. Hire to fill
a space and one accepts dead weight. On any board, there is room
for at-large members who represent broad constituencies. There
are also tremendous organizational needs, and board members must
be recruited who have the knowledge, connections, and tenacity
to address these needs. Therefore, designing a written profile
of desired board members is Step One of the recruitment process.
Board Member Profile
A board member profile outlines the specific traits and talents
an individual should exemplify to be considered for membership
on the board. For instance, an agency that is anticipating a
capital campaign may need someone with connections to wealth
throughout the community. Development of the profile starts with
the board (and staff and consumers, too) brainstorming a list
of all the names they can of people who fit this description.
No one is ruled out because they might be “too busy,” “over-committed,” or
seemingly “uninterested.” During brainstorming the
trick is get lots of ideas on paper; editing comes later. The
resulting list becomes a call-sheet. The Executive Director or
board representative contacts the individuals on the list to
feel-out their interest and capacity for accomplishing the board
role. Even if someone is contacted who is too busy to serve,
he/she probably has an employee, friend, or family member who
is interested. Use the meeting to generate more connections.
Networking is used to recruit the best and the brightest.
Select more than one candidate. Even in small communities, much
talent exists and by making it somewhat difficult to attain board
membership, the status of being a board member grows. Ultimately,
the organization benefits from having the public perception of
exclusivity. This board is the one the community seeks to join
because this board has the best members. Selecting anyone who
happens to be available drives down the likelihood that the best
the community has to offer will ever be interested. Make it hard
to become a member, make the work challenging, and the board
gains status, power, and impact.
Talents and Skills
Another concern during recruitment is believing that all organizations
need a legal representative and/or an accountant as members.
These are back-office issues and may or may not be critical to
the board. It is difficult to find attorneys and CPAs with time
or interest to be on a board where their talents are used in
the same way they are used in their professions. Many people
want to be seen as more than their careers, so seek individuals
who can use their talents and their broader interests to build
the agency. Capitalize on the fact that people are interested
in giving back to their communities and that they are intrigued
at flexing their muscles and brains by learning new skills and
having new experiences. Thoroughly consider how much legal advice
is needed by the organization: typically, not much. So buy legal
advice and recruit board members who can work on the strategic
plan. If understanding money management is an issue, get a local
college accounting professor to do a short in-service training
for the board on reading balance sheets, and contract with a
local CPA for actual accounting services.
Training and Expertise
Board development also offers opportunities to identify potential
hard-working members. Most board members receive very little
in the way of training and education about governance. Critical
competencies for most non-profit boards include such topics as:
• human resources management,
• budgeting,
• understanding financial statements,
• “best-practice” in rehabilitation (or other fields),
• meeting management,
• communication, negotiation, etc.
In most communities there are local experts in these subject
areas. Business owners, sales professionals, college professors,
accountants, attorneys and others are often more than willing
to give time to charitable organizations by speaking on topics
of expertise. Not only do board members learn new and valued
skills, but this also presents an opportunity for the organization
to showcase its talent, mission, and commitment to the community.
Undoubtedly, some of the people doing the training will become
patrons of the agency, financial supporters, and, maybe—if
they are good—future board members.
Cary Griffin is the Director of Special Projects at the Rural
Institute. You can reach him at
(877) 243-2476 toll free; (406) 243-2454; or cgriffin@selway.umt.edu |
