Time to talk about your nonprofit’s board of directors.  Why are boards a necessary component of a nonprofit organization?  Who are the members that sit on the board? How does an organization find and recruit members?  Let’s take a look at why board members are such an integral part of your nonprofit.

To start with, any registered 501(c)(3) organization must have a board of directors.  Because this is a tax-exempt status, the IRS legally requires a board of directors. The board is responsible to ensure the nonprofit adheres to the legal, ethical, financial and practical guidelines established for the organization.

Board members should represent your nonprofit and do what’s needed to carry out your mission.  This includes recruiting new members, promoting the organization, advocating for your cause and fundraising.

Finding the right board members can be challenging.  It requires a hard look at what your organization’s needs are and how best to fill those roles.  BoardSource suggests recruiting board members with expertise in the following areas:
Financial Experts

• To ensure that your board has enough financial expertise to provide meaningful oversight of the organization’s finances.
• To bring a financial lens to strategic planning and decision-making.

Legal Experts

• To ensure the board pays attention to relevant legal issues as a part of strategic planning and decision-making.
• To provide guidance about when outside legal counsel might be necessary.
• To help access pro-bono legal resources.

Advocacy Experts

• To help your board think through how expanded board participation in advocacy could help support your mission.
• To help connect your staff with key decision-makers.

Marketing Experts

• To help the board think about your organization’s brand and identity as a part of its overall strategy.
• To help think through strategies to improve outreach, increase access and leverage resources.
• To help access pro-bono marketing resources.

HR Experts

• To help the board apply HR best practices in its management of the the organization’s leadership.
• To bring a human resources lens to strategic planning and decision-making, including talent and change management.
• To help the board manage itself and its own talent.

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Understanding why you need a board of directors and identifying specific needs are only part of the process.  Now to find them! That’s a huge undertaking. Here are a few options to consider for recruiting potential members:

• Volunteer Center McHenry County:  Join VCMC and take advantage of the many benefits membership offers.  This includes the ability to post and share the organization’s board membership needs.  VCMC markets these needs via the website but also through social media and e-news. Visit VCMC to learn more.
•  Recruit from your existing volunteer pool:  Volunteers already know your story and support your mission.  Ask if they might be interested in a different type of volunteer role.
• Network with colleagues:  Don’t be afraid to reach out to colleagues with other nonprofits and ask if they have anyone they could recommend.  They may have knowledge of young professionals in the community looking for the experience of being part of a nonprofit board.   
• Take recommendations and nominations from current board members:  Part of each board members responsibilities should be actively recruiting and vetting potential new members.  They understand best what your organization might need.
• Identify supporters with a personal connection to your cause:  Folks with first-hand view of your organization might provide a diverse perspective to the board.

Visit BoardEffect for more tips on board member recruiting.

Don’t let board member recruiting intimidate you.  A carefully developed recruiting plan will serve you well.

Still needing additional guidance.  Check out these excellent online resources.   
·         National Council of Nonprofits
·         BoardSource
·         BoardEffect

It’s a new year!  This is a great time to start creating, reviewing,
​updating and implementing new practices for your organization. 
This month let’s look at staff training. 
​
​Staff training is a critical piece to the success of any organization.  Without it employees are flying by the seat of their pants assuming they are doing the right things in their role, but could potentially be doing more harm than good. 
Reasons for training vary depending on the goals and needs for the organization.  Some of these include:
·         Carry out the organization’s mission
·         Increasing fundraising
·         Improving risk management
·         Improving donor, employee, volunteer and client satisfaction
·         Career development

Now that you know the why of training let’s look at the how, starting with the "6 Best Practices: Is Your Nonprofit Staff Training Effective?" by Rebecca Wyatt

1. Training should support organizational goals
First, identify attainable goals and work towards them across all actions of our organization. Then, identify learning objectives for each training session that tie directly back to those organizational goals. If the training isn’t going to help you achieve your goals, it’s probably better to invest valuable resources elsewhere.

2. Effective training links to clearly articulated job descriptions and work processes
Similar to articulating organizational goals, you must also clearly articulate job descriptions and work processes. Once those are clearly defined, it’s much easier for your training program to define what success looks like. 3. Vary your training methods
While instructor-led training is great for the delivery of key skills and concepts, nothing beats ongoing coaching for reinforcing those concepts and fine-tuning the results. Remember to keep these sessions fun and engaging

4. New hires should complete a thorough orientation
Start early! Training new employees bonds them with senior staff and conveys that they’re a valued part of the team. New hire orientation also exposes them to the organization’s culture and sets a tone of continuous learning and improvement right from the beginning. Nonprofits are uniquely positioned to inspire new employees around the organization’s mission.

5. Job-related information and training should be readily available
Curating and managing job-related information is an ongoing task as the body of knowledge tends to grow over time. Identify the information and tools employees need to perform their jobs well and invest in a robust knowledge-management system so that they can find it.
 
6. Create a culture of learning
Leaders must demonstrate that learning is valued by continuously seeking their own professional development opportunities and sharing their enthusiasm with staff.
They must also include learning outcomes in staff professional goal setting and performance evaluations.  A culture of learning doesn’t stop at formal training - we learn from each other.

Reference:  https://www.salsalabs.com/get-know-us/blog/6-best-practices-is-your-nonprofit-staff-training-effective.
Blog authour Rebecca Wyatt has 15 years of experience in nonprofit management and training, racking up good karma points doing everything from teaching high school English to helping harried nonprofit staff sharpen their software skills.  She works for Salsa Labs, a supplier of nonprofit CRM software located in Bethesda, Maryland.

“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.” 
Benjamin Franklin