Before You Ask Your Board To Do More, Consider This

Good board governance is creating an environment where board members can meaningfully contribute. 

By Elise Cartagena, CVNC Operations & Communications Lead

It's easy to look at a board and think: We need them to fundraise more. Make more introductions. Be better ambassadors. Engage more.

Those may all be valid goals. But before investing more time and resources into getting your board to do more, consider a different question: Are we creating the conditions for our board members to contribute well?

Board members give their time, experience, relationships, and perspectives to organizations they care about. For many, board service is also personal: It’s an opportunity to support a mission they believe in and see that make a difference. 

Good board governance should recognize both sides of that relationship. Organizations need engaged board members, but board members also need clarity, meaningful opportunities to contribute, connection to the mission, and recognition that their service matters. 

So, before adding another ask to the agenda, try a different approach:  

Assess. Activate. Acknowledge. Adjust. Attend.

ASSESS.

Before focusing on what's missing, take stock of what's already working. 

Where are board members showing up? What are they hitting out of the park? Where is their contribution undeniable? Maybe someone consistently makes introductions, asks the question that changes the conversation, attends events, provides financial expertise, or is simply a reliable ambassador for your organization. 

Identifying those contributions gives you a different starting point. Instead of beginning with What aren't they doing?, you begin with What's working, and what can we learn from it?

ACTIVATE.

You've scheduled the meetings. Sent the materials. Provided the fundraising talking points. Maybe you've even assigned committees and outlined expectations. The board management box is checked, right? Not necessarily. 

Activating a board means giving specific members meaningful ways to use their experience, relationships, perspectives, and passion for the mission. Consider why individuals joined your board in the first place and where they each may be especially positioned or excited to contribute. 

The goal isn't simply participation. It's creating opportunities for board members to see themselves as an active part of advancing the organization's mission. 

ACKNOWLEDGE. 

Recognition doesn't have to mean an award, gift, or formal celebration. Sometimes the most meaningful acknowledgment is helping a board member understand what happened because they contributed. 

An introduction opened a new relationship. A thoughtful question helped staff approach a challenge differently. Their attendance at an event mattered to a client or partner. Their financial support helped make something possible. Recognize those contributions individually and collectively. 

Board service requires time and energy, often on top of demanding professional and personal lives. Acknowledgment reconnects members to something that can easily get lost among agendas, financial reports, and committee meetings: the feeling that their service is making a difference.

ADJUST.

Now, take a look within. 

How has the organization created the conditions for board members to fulfill their responsibilities? Are expectations clear? Do members receive the information they need to make decisions? Do meetings create opportunities for meaningful discussion, or are they primarily spent giving updates? Do board members understand where and how their involvement would be most useful? 

Mid-year is a natural time to ask these questions. 

The National Council of Nonprofits' Annual Board Tune-Up Checklist offers a useful framework for that reflection. It covers responsibilities ranging from financial oversight, policies, and board terms to fundraising, advocacy, and ambassadorship. Importantly, it also encourages organizations to recognize board successes, thank board members who give, and ask members how they personally would like to serve as advocates for the mission. 

Use the checklist not simply to ask Is our board doing these things?, but also: What can we do to better equip them to do these things well?

ATTEND TO THE PRIORITIES.

You don't have to tackle everything at once. 

Review the Annual Board Tune-Up Checklist with your board chair and identify one or two areas that deserve greater attention during the second half of the year. Put them on the agenda for an upcoming board meeting and start the conversation. 

A small adjustment now could mean clearer expectations, more meaningful engagement, or better governance down the road. 

REPEAT.

Good governance isn't a box to check once a year. 

Board members change. Leadership changes. Organizations evolve. And the ways people want—and are able—to contribute can change along with them. Continue activating your board. Notice what's working. Acknowledge their contributions. Adjust the environment you're creating for them. Attend to what needs attention next. 

Then do it again. Because before asking your board to give more, it's worth considering what you're giving them, too. 

Start your mid-year reflection with the National Council of Nonprofits' Annual Board Tune-Up Checklist.