Are you setting specific expectations for your nonprofit board? You should be. Whether yours is a small board with no major-gift fundraising experience or a large board that knows its job is to reach out to philanthropists, what you expect and communicate to your board members is vital to advancing your mission and reaching your financial goals.
Regardless of your size, stature, or location, setting those expectations is a critical piece of your success. And what’s the most important metric? Buy-in.
Are you a favorite?
Ask yourself, do your board members consider your nonprofit to be one of their favorites? If so, they should be prepared and willing to do what is required to advance their favorite nonprofit’s mission. Here's how they do it.
1. They give.
The best board members accept their personal responsibility in the success of your organization. Making a yearly personal investment and financially supporting any special projects, like a capital campaign, are essential. Those gifts made to your organization should be personally significant to each member. The definition of that differs for every person but be clear with your board members that this is expected. A board expectation agreement signed by members each year will spur the discussion and set the expectation.
It is especially important to be able to achieve this level of giving during a capital campaign or other project seeking major gifts. Prospective donors will want the assurance that your board is 100 percent committed to your organization and your project, and that all your board members have given a personally significant gift.
2. They invite others to give.
Your board members’ networks are important for your organization. Board members should expect to participate in bringing support to the organization throughout the year. An annual appeal is an important time to enlist their support. They can sign appeal letters to their friends and family and send thank you letters. During event planning, they can ask those in their network to participate through ticket, team, or table purchases. Make this part of your board expectation agreement, asking them to do specific things that encourage those outside the organization to give. During a capital campaign, they should make introductions and consider joining in on solicitations within their peer group with another board member or the executive director.
3. They share skills.
Sit down personally with each board member to ask them what skills they can contribute and then find the ways to best take them up on what they offer. When your board members have particular talents, like marketing, writing, or designing, ask them to lend those strengths to help make you successful and keep your outsourcing costs down, especially if you’re small. Professionals in banking, investment, real estate, accounting, and the law can provide expert insight and advice as well. Know your board members and draw on their expertise.
4. They open doors.
Board members should be willing to open doors to other potential donors or board members throughout their terms. This can include sharing their contacts, helping your nonprofit identify potential new supporters, and getting creative about how your organization can collaborate with individuals, businesses, and foundations. You can ask specifically in a board expectation agreement that they take an action like connecting two people to your nonprofit per month. During a capital campaign or other major fundraising project, you may ask them to personally introduce you or committee members to potential donors.
5. They advocate.
Again, the best board members accept their personal responsibility in the success of your organization. They share your story in the community and among their peers. They think of actions they can personally take to get the word out about the organization and any fundraising campaign it might enter. They use their time and network to spread the word. They are always ready to share your story and the vital role you play in the community.
These peer-to-peer communications are some of the most effective ways to make an impact on those new to your organization and your mission. You might consider asking them in a board expectation agreement to bring a friend or colleague for a tour of the nonprofit multiple times a year.
Encourage Board Members to Embrace You as Their Favorite
If you have never approached your board with these expectations and they are not accustomed to participating in this way, you can address it strategically. If you are approaching a significant event, like an endowment or capital campaign, it can be a good opportunity to revisit your bylaws or develop a board expectation form that you can ask board members to complete each year.
A Give or Get Clause
A “give or get” clause in your bylaws is an effective way to express how much board members are expected to give financially as part of their service on the board and how much they are expected to gather in financial support from others. Including this clause communicates to board members that a personal gift and helping to fundraise are part of their role.
If you haven’t yet set these expectations, know that it is common for nonprofits to require this level of participation and that many set minimums for giving and getting. Work with your board or a board committee to formulate these important levels of participation.
Board Expectation Agreement
You also should consider a board expectation agreement. The expectation agreement includes language indicating that the board member understands that their financial commitment is necessary to the success of the organization and asks him or her to indicate how they will participate financially in fundraising events and in a personal financial pledge. It could include selection of committees on which the member will serve and how the member will help open doors and cultivate donors. Here’s an example to get you started creating your own board expectation agreement.
An honest discussion by your organization about changes to the bylaws and the institution of a board expectation agreement will benefit your nonprofit. It will set new expectations, it can revitalize board members, and it can give board members who don’t consider you a favorite the opportunity to roll off the board.
Expect to be their favorite. You need all of your board members to be your biggest champions, both in their words and in their actions. Use these tools to set expectations, inspire your board, and push you forward.
- Search the PathFinder for more nonprofit fundraising resources
- Join Kevin Wallace and Carlyn Schulzke for their upcoming webinars, Capital Campaigns: Building Momentum with Grants, and the Power of 3 series: Capital Campaigns.