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Nonprofit Governance
Strengthen your nonprofit organization by strengthening your board.
Strengthen Your Board
The nonprofit board is one of the most common ways that volunteers become involved in the life of a nonprofit organization. While board members expect to be able to make a difference, they bring a wide variety of expectations and assumptions of how they will contribute. The result is that board effectiveness varies wildly, ranging from high-performing teamwork all the way to destructive infighting. What makes a nonprofit board strong and keeps it effective?
What
A nonprofit board is a collection of individuals acting with one voice as stewards for the true owners of the nonprofit organization, which is often the general public. The board has the ultimate accountability and the ultimate responsibility for the organization, in both the legal and the practical senses.
Why
Most governing boards of nonprofit organizations accomplish work of substance and significance. Yet all boards find themselves less than effective at times. Some boards rubber-stamp action already taken by staff. Others micro-manage much of what is undertaken by the entire staff. When they find themselves in either extreme, boards are not effective stewards of the organization.
In response to either extreme, Executive Directors find themselves spending too much time managing the board in order to run the organization. Instead, consider the possibilities for the organization when the Executive Director and the board work as partners, each with specific, understood and respected roles.
How
What's working well for your nonprofit board today? Where could your board be strengthened? How would your nonprofit board stack up if you assessed your board in the following areas?
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roles and responsibilities clearly understood |
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board meetings that are effective and strategy-driven
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smooth transitions through board changes |
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efficient and appropriate monitoring of the organization |
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Executive Director: hiring, expectations and evaluation |
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board structure and composition |
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board members' role in fundraising |
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board member orientation and development |
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evaluation of the board's performance |
Cornerstone can help you and your board select and work on areas for development in order to become effective stewards of the mission of your nonprofit organization.
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