Does your Board disappoint you? Would it be a miracle for your nonprofit to have a Board full of movers and shakers who are constantly drumming up support for your mission? Are you tired of having to chase Board members down to find out if they’re planning to attend an event or a meeting? Do you wish your nonprofit Board would just pull their weight? Unfortunately, these are very common issues facing small nonprofit organizations! And if you’re planning to raise BIG money this year, it’s time for a change. Even if your nonprofit is doing amazing work and changing lives, you’re probably still struggling to keep your Board engaged. I know. I’ve been there. Every day, I coach people with these and many other nonprofit Board issues, like: Lack of attendance at meetings Avoidance of anything that remotely looks like fundraising Micromanagement Apathy or unproductive conflict It’s frustrating for you, I know. But here’s the thing - it’s not fun for your Board members either! I remember being on a nonprofit Board that was incredibly disorganized. Even though I agreed to serve because I cared about the nonprofit, I soon became frustrated with the experience. Every time I saw a Board meeting on my calendar, my heart would sink. I dreaded going because the meetings weren’t fun or productive. The empty chairs of Board members who repeatedly fail to show up for your meetings PROVE that they would rather be somewhere (anywhere) else!!! I believe that the core problem lies in recruitment and orientation. When you get the wrong people on your nonprofit Board, it doesn’t matter what comes next, it’s not going to work out well. And if you happen to get the right people on your Board, but you don’t give them clear expectations, you’re going to have equally dismal results. But it doesn’t stop there. Once you get the right people on your Board, you have to get them oriented so they understand what’s going on and how they can plug in. Otherwise, they’re just a by-stander, watching and not participating. The answer is actually fairly simple. It’s how you think about and treat your Board members. When you honor their commitment to your organization, and treat them as valued donors, you’ll get what you expect from them. It just takes a few key tactics to build a solid, successful Board. “Sandy’s so-very-positive style and gracious approach turned a disgruntled and reluctant group into an enthusiastic crowd of fundraising converts. All who attended her sessions said it was the best training they had ever received in the whole of their professional careers. What Sandy does in training is take people where they are and lead them to a much higher level. Our now-productive fundraisers are raising more money than we originally thought possible, and we owe it to the inspirational and motivational training they received.” ~Doug Kingsriter, former Vice President of Development, Be the Match

1. 3 Reasons Why
Your Board Disappoints
You
(and how to fix it!)
Sandy Rees, CFRE

2. What do I know about Boards?

3. Truth for today
If you want to help more people, you’ve got to raise
more money.

4. Truth for today
If you want to help more people, you’ve got to raise
more money.
If you want to raise more money, you need your
Board’s help.

5. So let’s talk about…
YOUR
BOARD

7. Why do they do that?
They won’t help with fundraising
They don’t return phone calls
Sometimes they don’t do what they say they will
Other times they’re more trouble than they’re worth

8. The Myth of Boards
When someone joins a Board:
• They know what to do
• They know how to be a good Board member
• They will help with fundraising

9. Most Board members are…
• Inexperienced
• Ignorant
• Love the mission
• Don’t know what to do

10. Why people say “yes” to your Board
• Care about the mission
• Want to serve or give back
• Want to rub elbows with other Board members
• What else?

11. WIIFM

12. We get the Board we deserve.

13. Reason #1
Your expectations for your Board are out
of whack.

14. Manage expectations
• Set the stage from the beginning
• Make everything CLEAR
• Put it in writing
“You’ll be expected to participate in fundraising
and make a gift.”

15. Manage expectations
Create and use a Board Expectations Sheet
1. List what the organization expects from the
Board member
2. List what the Board member can expect from
the organization

16. Reason #2
You’ve got the wrong people on your
Board

17. Build the Board of your Dreams
• Identify ideal Board member candidates
• Look for both skills and commitment
• Use a process for recruitment
“Warm bodies need not apply”

18. Build the Board of your Dreams
• Create a process to interview potential Board
candidates
• Leave yourself plenty of time to have multiple
conversations with them to get to know them and
vice versa
This is great work for a Governance Committee!

19. Reason #3
You aren’t setting them up for success

20. Educate them
•There’s no Board Police to monitor your Board
•Help them learn their job
•Provide continuous education

21. Why won’t they help?
Fear

22. It’s about fear
Rejection
Failure (or success)
What others will think
Humiliation
Making mistakes
The unknown
Confrontation
Criticism
Getting hurt
Not making budget
Not doing it right
Not fitting in

23. Then come the excuses
To avoid discomfort, they use excuses:
“I don’t have time to...”
“I don’t know how to...”
“That’s not what I signed up for.”
“I already hit my friends up for…”

24. And then comes the behavior
They don’t return calls
They don’t show up to meetings
They don’t keep their word

25. The answer is simple
•Change what you expect
•Give them support
•Educate them

26. If you want to help more people, you must
raise more money.
If you want to raise more money, you need
your Board’s help.

27. The answer is simple
More of the same = more of the same
If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get
what you always got

28. Board Training in a Box
Announcing…

29. Includes everything you need to conduct your
own powerful Board training, (without the
expensive consultant!)
www.BoardTrainingInABox.com

30. Covers:
•Recruiting outstanding new Board members
•Financial accountability
•Self governance and annual evaluations
•Running an effective (and fun!) meeting
•Fundraising!
•And more
www.BoardTrainingInABox.com

31. Comes with:
•2 video DVDs of training
•10 participant workbooks
•Facilitator’s Guide
•Toys and tools to make it fun!
•12 monthly emails with ideas for 5-minute
trainings
www.BoardTrainingInABox.com

32. Cost: $697
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coupon code for 10% off: GET10
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