{"id":561889,"date":"2015-11-18T16:25:48","date_gmt":"2015-11-18T21:25:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/joangarry.com\/?p=561889"},"modified":"2024-06-21T13:58:00","modified_gmt":"2024-06-21T17:58:00","slug":"board-orientation-template","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joangarry.com\/board-orientation-template\/","title":{"rendered":"A Template For A Great Board Orientation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Does your nonprofit already have an inspiring, helpful, put-together board orientation program for new board members? If yes, you get a big hug from me. Well done.<\/p>\n

This post isn\u2019t for you. Instead, consider reading Critical Interview Questions for New Board Members<\/a> (a very popular post I wrote that helps you figure out what to ask people you are considering for your board.)<\/p>\n

For the 95% of you that are still here\u2026 well, we have some important work to do.<\/p>\n

Healthy nonprofits have great boards that work hand-in-hand with the Executive Director to help fulfill the mission.<\/p>\n

In order to have a great board, a nonprofit needs board members who are engaged, inspired, and understand how to help. This is true for long-standing board members. This is especially<\/em> true for brand new ones.<\/p>\n

So why don\u2019t you have a great board orientation program? The main objection I hear is time. You wish you had a moment to pee, no less pull together a board orientation package.<\/p>\n

Today I\u2019m going to show you exactly<\/em> how to create such a package, step-by-step. By the end of this, you will have no excuse. You will see very clearly why this is so important. And you\u2019ll be fired up to do it.<\/p>\n

My board orientation template works for tiny one-person nonprofits just as well as it does for large ones. In fact, for smaller nonprofits, it\u2019s especially easy to put together.<\/p>\n

So here we go\u2026<\/p>\n

NEW BOARD MEMBER ORIENTATION FAIL<\/h2>\n

First, let me tell you the true story of \u201cSofia\u201d and her recent experience when she joined a board.<\/p>\n

Sofia had been involved as a donor to the organization. She enthusiastically agreed to join the board because she believed she could make a difference.<\/p>\n

During the recruitment process, she received some basic materials about the \u201cjob,\u201d most specifically a document outlining roles and responsibilities. Score one for this organization.<\/p>\n

Time for her first board meeting.<\/p>\n

Even though there was a class of new board members joining at the same time, there had been no separate gathering to provide any information to enable them to hit the ground running.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, Sofia walked into the meeting feeling excited. She was pointed to a table of binders, each with a name on it. \u201cMy board orientation pack,\u201d she thinks. But there was no binder for her.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, just take Daniel’s \u2013 he\u2019s not coming tonight.\u201d<\/em> Daniel has been on the board for years.<\/p>\n

The binder contained a wealth of current and past information, including many pages of past board meeting minutes. But there was no time to review it before the board meeting started.<\/p>\n

Sofia was lost \u2013 it\u2019s like she started reading a book in the fourteenth chapter.<\/p>\n

She discovered that decisions were often made by mysterious committees. There was an executive committee. It seemed to have a lot of power. She wasn\u2019t too sure who was on it.<\/p>\n

The committees weren\u2019t the only mystery. The most baffling one came at the end of the evening when all binders were to be returned to the table. You couldn\u2019t take them home. The only explanation was that board members would not return them and they\u2019d have to make new copies.<\/p>\n

How long do you think Sofia lasted on the board? Let me just say that she didn\u2019t make it past her first term.<\/p>\n

This story makes me mad. Sofia was more engaged before joining the board than after leaving. Nonprofits can ill afford to lose one single person who raises her hand or opens her checkbook.<\/p>\n

A new board member needs so much more than this. The job is fuzzy to begin with. And oh, let\u2019s not forget that they already have a job.<\/p>\n

So I don\u2019t care what size your organization is, you need to do SOMETHING. You need the board member to have context, information and color commentary so she doesn\u2019t have to try pick it up by osmosis.<\/p>\n

JOAN\u2019S SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE BOARD ORIENTATION PLAN <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Now we get to the meat\u2026 the plan itself. My plan has two parts \u2013 1) The Binder and 2) The Session.<\/p>\n

The point of each is to make sure new board members feel the following:<\/p>\n