“My board members don’t know each other.”
“My board doesn’t have time to socialize.”
“I haven’t met all my board members.”
It’s surprising how often I hear these kinds of statements from nonprofit leaders.
I wonder how boards like this effectively establish a strategic plan or expect to accomplish goals when they don’t even know each other? What if a professional sports team didn’t know each other and only talked on game day? What if they were just a collection of strong individuals who only gathered twelve times a year for a couple of hours and yet expected to win the championship as a “team?”
Volunteers are busy people, so how can you help them become a cohesive team, rather than simply a group?
Here’s where I’d start:
- Personally visit with each board member at least once a year. Go to their office or home. You’ll learn so much more about them.
- Provide social opportunities where spouses/families are welcome. The more spouses feel part of the organization, the stronger commitment your board members will have. Plus, they won’t always have to choose between volunteer service and family time.
- Use your annual campaign as a team building opportunity. Captains recruit all board members to a team and together they plan what they will raise to support the organization. Then they can celebrate together!
- Provide board mentors to new board members. Mentors can sit next to newbies at meetings or invite them to lunch afterwards to answer questions. They can share a ride to an event, strategize on a fundraising call, etc.
- Each month, ask a few board members to share what they love about your organization as an opening thought. Other opening thought ideas: What’s the funniest thing that has happened to you as a board member? What was your first experience with our organization? What’s the question you get asked the most about our mission?
- As you get to know your board, share that information in an appropriate way. You might forward around a news article about the success of one member’s company with the rest of the board. Or you might let the group know that one of your members is celebrating a birthday or engagement or some other life event.
I used to work for a Y CEO who would say “Leadership is everything. Period.” He’s right!* Focusing on your board’s engagement with your mission – and with each other – is worth every minute you’ll dedicate to it. The stronger your board functions as a team, the more resilient, creative and inspired it will be! In the end, your fundraising and your impact on the community is equal only to how well your board functions not just individually, but as a team.
What are some of the ways you’ve found to bring your board closer together?
*Hat Tip to Jack Lund.
