October 29, 2007
Building a Better Board
Volunteers who serve on the boards of directors of nonprofit organizations often believe that they are helping the organization with their expertise.
But Albert Ruesga, the author of White Courtesy Telephone, writes that they are often mistaken.
Trustees are often viewed by executive directors and other staff members as a burden rather than a blessing, he says.
“More often than not, nonprofit EDs will gripe about the ‘dead wood’ on their boards, about board members who require enormous amounts of care and feeding, about micro-managers and broken promises,” writes Mr. Ruesga, who works as vice president at the Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation, in Washington. “Effective board members exist, but they appear to be rare birds indeed.”
Mr. Ruesga suggests that board members need to take time to get to know the organizations for which they serve. They also need to spend more time understanding the challenges faced by staff members.
And, he says, it would help if more experienced board members took more time to help newer members better understand their roles.
“I don’t know why those of us who serve as board members so often get it wrong,” Mr Ruesga writes. “My sense is that the mentorship and nurturing of young leaders by more senior colleagues is hopelessly out of fashion.”
Are nonprofit boards out of touch with the work that is done by their organizations? If so, who is to blame — the board members or the executives they serve? Click on the comments link below this post to share your thoughts.
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