Recruitment – What’s wrong with this picture?
Recruitment is the first step in building any high-performing team. Governance and nominating committees need to use the same care as CEOs use to hire a new employee. Board membership is a privilege. Board members can develop leadership skills, make a difference in their communities, and build meaningful business and social networks. Every step of the recruitment process should underscore this value.
In some organizations, board members rely on the CEO to lead the process. Yes, it’s true the CEO probably knows the organization better than any board member. But the CEO’s role is not the same as the board’s role. Turning recruitment over to the CEO is an abdication of board responsibility. The board exists to provide strategic guidance to the organization, to safeguard its assets, assure that it has sufficient financial resources to deliver its mission, and recruit, hire, and fire the CEO. Each of these functions demands board independence, a framework of shared accountability for results, and agreement on mission, vision, and values.
Your organization’s board member recruitment process is crucial to laying the groundwork for solid engagement and teamwork. You can begin your investigation of your board’s functioning by documenting your board and staff’s steps in recruiting new board members. Your goal is to record and evaluate your current process, not your ideal process. Taking a hard look at your approach and plan for this initial meeting can reveal opportunities to address assumptions and misalignments.
As you list the steps in the process, here are some questions to ask:
- First, who is leading recruitment efforts? Often recruitment is a de facto responsibility of the board chair or nominating committee chair. However, they may not be the best person for the task. Are they engaged, enthusiastic, and mission-focused? Can they present the opportunity for board service as the privilege it is? A committee member or another board member may have the drive and enthusiasm to recruit top talent to your board successfully. If so, consider creating a process that brings them into the spotlight and allows the rest of the committee to have a supporting role.
- How is your committee working? Nominating or governance committees should meet year-round to discuss the organization’s current and future talent needs. Create and use a board member recruiting matrix that focuses on the skills and knowledge to support and advance your mission and values. Think beyond concrete skills. For example, if your organization struggles with visibility, think about possible board members who are well known and regarded in the community. Just be sure they are willing to become engaged and knowledgeable. Nothing kills a reputation quicker than a lukewarm endorsement by a board members. Collect names and talk with possible board members on an on-going basis, not just when you have a vacancy.
- What is being said during those recruitment meetings? Lay out membership expectations and benefits. Use a board member job description that accurately depicts the time commitment, attendance, and fundraising expectations. Often non-profits take a ‘less than’ posture when recruiting. This is particularly true if the organization hopes to recruit someone from a high-status civic or corporate background. If you find you are downplaying the expectations, you are setting the organization and that board member for disappointment.
- Are you screening for experience and management acumen? If your organization recruits board members with little or no management or leadership experience, do you have the resources to provide leadership development training? Can you support a board mentoring process that links new members with more seasoned members? Most people have no board experience or training in ‘what’ board are supposed to do and need training on roles and responsibilities. Lack of knowledge about how a board works is a red flag for future disengagement or worse.
Next week: Part 3 of Board Engagement will look at what happens after a new member comes onto the board.