Meeting Recap

Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards: Place Your Mission at the Center of the Conversation

On February 14, NSC and the Nonprofit Presidents Council hosted Ms. Ruth McCambridge, editor-in-chief of The Nonprofit Quarterly presenting on "Basic Board Responsibilities" at the first installment in the 2008 quarterly series.

McCambridge first noted that in her travels and to her knowledge she has not found an affinity group or other national association specifically for nonprofit board presidents.  She commended the effort being put forth by NSC and the President's Council in establishing the group and offering an opportunity for board presidents to network and learn more about governance functions.  

Not Your Daddy's Board Basics

As the presentation got started McCambridge was quick to point out that perhaps a better title for the presentation would have been "Not Your Daddy's Board Basics".  She explained that many of the suggestions and theories she would present are not the typical basics normally presented or expected as "basics".

McCambridge stated that the typical prescriptions for boards are not yielding the results they intended (i.e. well functioning boards that are integrated into the work of the organization).  The notion, she contends, that you must recruit board positions by a skills matrix, at times may be insufficient at building a sound, well-rounded board.  For example, McCambridge stated, that having a board with individuals with high financial skills is important; however, recruiting from other fields may be unnecessary and can actually be counter-productive.  Research states that these types of individuals will only speak to their experience and skills sets for which they were recruited. [Read more the research.]

McCambridge also gave another example:  the recruitment of individuals with connections to the board.  Where this practice works well for larger nonprofits (hospitals, universities, symphonies, etc.) it does not work well for others such as community organizations.  In fact, this can be disruptive to functionality.  All organizations need people who care deeply about the mission and the impact of the organization - and who better than volunteers or constituents to give a diverse voice on your board.  

So, what works? 

To recruite a board member:  As stated in the final example above, a board needs to ensure that the people around the board table truly care about the organization.  When individuals show an interest in the organization get them involved through volunteer positions, committee work, or event planning for example.  McCambridge mentioned that in doing work with the organization you can observe an individual's motivation and passion over time and elevate them to a board position. 

A successful board chair:  Really good board chairs are facilitative listeners and have the best interest of the organization at heart. 

Sustainability:  It is essential that a board pay attention to and set goals for amounts of unrestricted dollars available to the organization.  An organization with unrestricted funds can work more fluidly and can take some risks to better position programs, seek and implement ideas and have room to grow.  Otherwise, the organization can get boxed in and become stagnant.   McCambridge said that the following President's Council program on Financial Leadership for Nonprofit Boards scheduled for May 15 would be a great introduction on this concept.

Suggested Reading

from The Nonprofit Quarterly

• The Best and Worst of Board Chairs by Yvonne Harrison and Vic Murray
• Board Stories Involving Humans by Ruth McCambridge
  
• Organizational Slack (or Goldilocks and the Three Budgets) by Woods Bowman

More on Ruth McCambridge:

Ms. McCambridge has more than thirty-five years of experience working in and with social justice and community based nonprofits.  For twenty of these years McCambridge worked in and managed community based and social change organizations.  In 1987, McCambridge took a longstanding interest in organizational dynamics to the Boston Foundation where she developed a statewide management assistance program for homeless and battered women shelters and managed the Fund for the Homeless.  She stayed at the Boston Foundation for ten years, helping along the way to launch and manage a number of other collaboratively funded capacity building initiatives.

Ms. McCambridge is currently the Editor in Chief of The Nonprofit Quarterly, an innovative nonprofit journal aimed at helping to build the capacity of individual nonprofits and the sector at large.  Her work with the Quarterly is part of a larger body of work aimed at building fields of practice within the nonprofit sector. She also serves as strategic advisor to the Alliance for Nonprofit Excellence’s nationally recognized Program for Nonprofit Excellence, advising the program, its consultants and cohort participants in capacity building work.