What Makes A Great Nonprofit Board Member? Some Unique Suggestions!!!
By: Eugene Fram Free Digital Photo
Viewers may question my taking time to develop this post when a Google search, using the above title, shows about 22 million listings recorded in 0.96 of second! The answer is that I located a board article with a few interesting insights, relating to for-profit boards, that also can be useful to the selection of nonprofit directors. * Following are some of the unusual ideas.
Dysfunctional Levels in Nonprofit Boards & Organizations.
By: Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
Articles and studies from a Google search on “Dysfunctions in Nonprofit Boards & Organizations,” yields 3,530,000 items in .53 of a second. These items show dysfunctions on charter school boards, church boards, healthcare boards, trade associations, human services boards etc.
Rick Moyers, a well-known nonprofit commentator and nonprofit researcher, concluded:
“A decade’s worth of research suggests that board performance is at best uneven and at worst highly dysfunctional. ….. The experiences of serving on a board — unless it is high functioning, superbly led, supported by a skilled staff and working in a true partnership with the executive – is quite the opposite of engaging.”
These data and comments can lead one to conclude that all nonprofit boards are dysfunctional. I suggest that nonprofit boards can generate a range of dysfunctional behavioral outcomes, but the staff can muddle through and continue to adequately serve clients.
Nonprofit Boards Should Consider the Implications of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
BY: Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
AI is rapidly being implemented in many environments, some with aggressive intensity. It presents a new reality—machines create fascinating outputs that require less energy to produce and do so at lower costs. A few, at this stage, are capable of making “human-like” decisions
What Nonprofit Skill Levels Might be At Risk
The Nonprofit CEO–How Much Board-CEO Trust Is Involved?
By; Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
The title, CEO for the operating head of a nonprofit, clearly signals to the public who has the final authority in all operating matters and can speak for the organization.* .
The CEO designation calls for an unwritten trusting contact with the board based on mutual respect, drawing from the symbolism that he or she is the manager of the operating link between board and staff. It is a partnership culture. However, a solid partnership does not allow the board to vacate its fiduciary and overview obligations. The board has moral and legal obligations to “trust but verify” and to conduct a rigorous annual evaluation of outcomes and impacts CEO has generated for the organization.
While the trust the board has in its chief operating officer can’t be described in exact quantitative terms, viewing it through the lens of a set of CEO and/or Board behaviors can give an idea that a significant level of trust is involved in the relationship.
Following are some of the behaviors that signify a trusting partnership is in place:
How Can Nonprofits Accommodate To External Influences? Some Field Observations
By Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
Ruth McCambridge, former editor of Nonprofit Quarterly, pointed out “Our organizational management, (board) styles and structures are affected by the four external influences.” See paraphrased bolded items below. (http://bit.ly/1HSwrZY)
Following are some specific field observations I have encountered that, over several decades, support her model relating to external influences.
The nonprofit’s mission field: McCambridge points out that arts organizations have dual have leadership models—artistic and business. However, unless specified which has final authority, the system can lead to continual conflict between the two; the artistic leader wanting the most authentic productions and the business leader concerned with budget realities. The final authority is often determined by which leader has the CEO title.
Human services boards and staffs often operate at a much higher emotional level than other types of nonprofits. Examples: Some of these board members consider themselves “families,” frequently fail to make the hard choices when board members are ineffective directors. Even the least productive board chair can be venerated. Staff members similarly can be emotionally bonded, failing to realistically acknowledge the strengths and weaknesses of others.
On the other hand, board members of trade or professional associations often look to the staff as “servants” who should closely follow board directions. Example: One association CEO I encountered creativity developed a million dollar reserve for the group. Yet he was only allowed to spend up to $5K of a multimillion-dollar budget without formal board approval.
The nonprofit’s regulatory environment: It can be argued that nonprofit organizations are much more regulated than their for-profit counterparts. In addition to traditional state and Federal corporation laws, all nonprofits must abide by the Federal Intermediate Sanctions Act that prohibits them from providing excess benefits to anybody in a position to influence actions—internally a management or staff person and externally a vendor, donor or volunteer, etc. Charitable and public benefit nonprofits must annually file an IRS Form 990 that has, in addition to financial data, 38 questions related to corporate governance. Health care nonprofits face a multitude of regulations related to staff certification and relationships with patients. Example: A psychiatrist employed by a counseling agency resigned and took patient records with him. The employing organization had to sue for return of the records because the agency, not the psychiatrist, was responsible for confidentiality.
The nonprofit’s communities’/industries’ spoken belief systems: Having worked with nonprofits on both US coasts, I have generally observed that CEOs on the east coast are given much more managerial latitude once a nonprofit startup moves beyond its early stages. Example: I have consulted with two west coast nonprofits both well beyond the startup stage—one with a budget of $6 million and he other with a budget of $10 million. A community model that required significant number of board interventions covered both. If they were on the east coast, both would likely have had CEOs with the title “President /CEO” with much more operating flexibility than the CEOs I observed on the west coast.
The nonprofit’s communities’/industries’ cultural norms and dynamics: Peter Drucker, the noted management expert, is said to have remarked, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast every morning.” He meant that strategy needs to be in line with culture to succeed. Nonprofit boards frequently align with this comment. Example: If a nonprofit board is a conservative one and content with a “mind the store CEO culture,” one or two board members can’t do much to drive change, until the CEO retires or leaves.
Suggestion for action
With the assistance of an independent moderator, many boards could benefit from an in-depth discussion of these four issues every couple of years. It may open discussion on some internal issues that need corrective action.
Should All Board Members Be Required to be Involved With Fundraising? Updated Version
By Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
Based on my experiences, I suggest those who have done it before or are willing, with some coaching, to try it. However, board members also need to maximize their colleagues’ contacts. That may involve teaming someone who does not usually get involved in fundraising with an experienced hand, if the inexperienced person knows a potential donor.
The CEO will also need to be an assertive leader when it comes to fundraising, but all board members will need to play an active or supportive role. Neither board members nor CEOs can abdicate their fundraising roles.
Everyone on a nonprofit board should make an annual contribution. This is accomplished by a Give and Get Policy.* Certainly, the amount depends on each director’s personal situation, but even a token amount is significant or useful contributions in other ways are in line with the policy. When developing 21st century funding grant proposals for foundations or corporations, funders want to know whether or not all members of the board have a personal interest.
*https://www.amyeisenstein.com/set-give-get-policy-for-your-board/
How Can Nonprofits Accommodate To External Influences? Some Field Observations
By Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
Ruth McCambridge, former editor of Nonprofit Quarterly, points out “Our organizational management, (board) styles and structures are affected by the four external influences.” See paraphrased bolded items below. (http://bit.ly/1HSwrZY) Following are some specific field observations I have encountered that, over several decades, support her model relating to external influences.
The nonprofit’s mission field: McCambridge points out that arts organizations have dual have leadership models—artistic and business. However, unless specified which has final authority, the system can lead to continual conflict between the two; the artistic leader wanting the most authentic productions and the business leader concerned with budget realities. The final authority is often determined by which leader has the CEO title.
Measuring Nonprofits’ Impacts: A Necessary Process for the 21st Century
By Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
Unfortunately, outcomes and impact are often unrelated, which is why a program that seems to produce better outcomes may create no impact at all. Worse, sometimes they point in opposite directions, as can happen when a program works with harder-to- service populations resulting in seemingly worse conditions, but (has) higher value-added impact. … Rigorous evaluations can measure impact (to a level of statistical accuracy), but they are usually costly (a non starter for many nonprofit), difficult and slow. * But how do the medium and small size nonprofits measure actual results in the outside world such as enhanced quality of life, elevated artistic sensitivity and community commitment? (more…)
NONPROFIT BOARDS HIRE AND CEOs MUST ACT!
By: Eugene Fram Free Digital Image
Whenever the time is ripe to select a new nonprofit CEO, I think of the old joke that says “…every person looks for the perfect spouse… meanwhile, they get married.” By the same token, nonprofit board members seek perfection in a new ED/CEO– and find that they must “settle” for less. But there are certain definitive attributes that are essential to his/her success in running the organization. With the pressures of increasingly slim budgets, fund development challenges and the difficulty of recruiting high quality employees, the 21st century ED/CEO must be action oriented and come equipped with at least a modicum of the following abilities: *
* http://nynmedia.com/news/lucky-13-what-should-we-expect-from-a-nonprofit-ceo
By: Eugene Fram Free Digital Photo
Nonprofit boards are governed by a series of obligations —some are clearly defined as legal responsibilities such as financial actions. Others, however, are less clearly defined and relate to people who are, in some way, associated with the organization. Guidelines to these diverse interactions are not typically archived in policies but are important to the overall professionalism of the board. They include consideration of its: board structure, internal operations, recruitment methods and leadership style.
Nonprofit Management 