David Malone (not his real name) just quit the board of a start-up nonprofit. When he first signed on, Malone thought that he was joining “an organization of peers with deep expertise.” He also understood that the board’s sole requirement was to attend six meetings per year.
At his first board meeting, Malone volunteered for a project that drew on his extensive finance experience. “In my mind, I was co-leading the project,” he says. “But in the executive director’s mind, she was leading the project and I was following.” The project further defied his expectations by requiring about 15 hours of project management per week. After the executive director overrode Malone’s advice and asked him to donate even more time, he politely resigned.
“Neither of us understood what the other one expected,” he says. “And that’s no way to motivate volunteers.”
Unclear expectations plague nonprofit boards, find Bradley E. Wright, an assistant professor of political science at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and Judith L. Millesen, an associate professor of political science at Ohio University. Their survey of 219 nonprofit chief executives and 249 board members shows that, indeed, most board members receive neither training for nor feedback about their board activities. This lack of information leads to confusion about what, exactly, board members are supposed to do. And that role ambiguity, in turn, dampens members’ commitment to the board.
The authors further show that even when chief executives know that board members do not understand their responsibilities, they are hesitant to offer education. “The board is essentially the boss of the executive director, and on top of that, the board is voluntary,” explains Bradley. Many executive directors thus feel uncomfortable meting out feedback or asking board members to make an additional commitment to training. “They don’t want to overextend their board members,” he adds.
At the same time, “if board members feel like they’re spinning their wheels, they’re not likely to stay with the organization,” Millesen notes. “But if they know what they’re doing right, as well as how they can shift their efforts, they’re likely not only to work harder, but also to get more fulfillment from their board service.” To these ends, she recommends that nonprofit boards offer a formal orientation about board roles and processes, periodic updates from staff , and site visits, as well as self-assessments and formal performance appraisals.
Read more stories by Alana Conner.