3 Reasons Why Your Board Disappoints You (and How to Fix it!)
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Transcript of 3 Reasons Why Your Board Disappoints You (and How to Fix it!)
3 Reasons Why Your Board Disappoints You
(and how to fix it!)
Sandy Rees, CFRE
What do I know about Boards?
Truth for today
If you want to help more people, you’ve got to raise more money.
Truth for today
If you want to help more people, you’ve got to raise more money.
If you want to raise more money, you need your Board’s help.
So let’s talk about…
YOUR BOARD
Why do they do that?
They won’t help with fundraising
They don’t return phone calls
Sometimes they don’t do what they say they will
Other times they’re more trouble than they’re worth
The Myth of Boards
When someone joins a Board:
• They know what to do• They know how to be a good Board
member• They will help with fundraising
Most Board members are…
• Inexperienced• Ignorant• Love the mission• Don’t know what to do
Why people say “yes” to your Board
• Care about the mission• Want to serve or give back• Want to rub elbows with other Board
members• What else?
WIIFM
We get the Board we deserve.
Reason #1
Your expectations for your Board are out of whack.
Manage expectations
• Set the stage from the beginning•Make everything CLEAR• Put it in writing
“You’ll be expected to participate in fundraising and make a gift.”
Manage expectations
Create and use a Board Expectations Sheet
1. List what the organization expects from the Board member
2. List what the Board member can expect from the organization
Reason #2
You’ve got the wrong people on your Board
Build the Board of your Dreams
• Identify ideal Board member candidates• Look for both skills and commitment•Use a process for recruitment
“Warm bodies need not apply”
Build the Board of your Dreams
• Create a process to interview potential Board candidates• Leave yourself plenty of time to have multiple conversations with them to get to know them and vice versa
This is great work for a Governance Committee!
Reason #3
You aren’t setting them up for success
Educate them
• There’s no Board Police to monitor your Board• Help them learn their job• Provide continuous education
Why won’t they help?
Fear
It’s about fear
RejectionFailure (or success)What others will thinkHumiliationMaking mistakesThe unknown
ConfrontationCriticismGetting hurtNot making budgetNot doing it rightNot fitting in
Then come the excuses
To avoid discomfort, they use excuses:
“I don’t have time to...”“I don’t know how to...”“That’s not what I signed up for.”“I already hit my friends up for…”
And then comes the behavior
They don’t return callsThey don’t show up to meetingsThey don’t keep their word
The answer is simple
• Change what you expect• Give them support• Educate them
If you want to help more people, you must raise more money.
If you want to raise more money, you need your Board’s help.
The answer is simple
More of the same = more of the same
If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you always got
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