| Many people join
Boards and Councils with a sense of excitement. They care deeply about
the organization and are interested in making a difference. However,
this enthusiasm may not last long. Some Board members stay on reluctantly,
for a sense of duty and obligation, while others may resign. What might
you do to keep them?
- Select individuals whose commitment to Board
work is unquestionable, and avoid enticing them with: “No
one else wants the job. Would you please, please do it?”.
- Give new Board members support, meaningful
orientation, and possibly some mentoring prior to them assuming their
leadership roles.
- Capitalize on members’ knowledge, expertise
and skills; Challenge them with interesting and meaningful assignments;
Create opportunities for them to excel and advance within the leadership
structure.
- Value, appreciate and recognize members for
their efforts and contributions (publicly and privately).
- Monitor members’ performance and evaluate
it against established standards; Do not hesitate to give them corrective
feedback on substandard performance, low commitment levels, and disruptive
or counter-productive behaviors.
- Show interest in members’ needs (including
the need to socialize and build a collegial network); Accommodate
them when you schedule meetings; Conduct your meetings in a business-like
manner, but add a sense of “humanity.”
- Engage everyone in Board work; Do not overload
the “obvious volunteers” (risking burnout) while others
sit idle (risking boredom and loss of interest).
- Create the right balance between continuity
(an appropriate number of experienced members) and renewal (an appropriate
number of new members). Don’t allow the Board to be controlled
exclusively by long-standing members, thereby stifling fresh input
from new Board members;
- Make meetings interesting, dynamic, and focused
on the organization’s mission, vision and strategic goals. Avoid
long and boring meetings that focus on minutiae; Embrace excellence
and demand it of everyone, and do not tolerate mediocrity.
- Give members an understanding of the goals
of Board decision-making (to generate quality decisions, inclusively,
and efficiently); Clarify that speaking up and addressing Board dysfunctions
is not only Okay, but is actually a requirement (even if speaking
up might “offend” someone).
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