Recruiting and onboarding board members

This guide is for founders and board chairs who need new board members and don't know where to find them, or who keep recruiting friends and wonder why the board isn't working. A strong board is one of the best protections a small charity has. After reading, you'll be able to map the skills your board has and lacks, find candidates outside your usual circle, welcome new members so they're useful quickly, and set term limits that keep the board healthy.

Start with what you need, not who you know

Most small boards begin as a founder's friends and family. That's normal. But a board made only of people who think alike and know each other well finds it hard to ask tough questions, and it often lacks key skills like finance or law.

Before you invite anyone, work out what the board needs over the next two or three years. Think about your plans. Are you hiring your first staff member? Applying for bigger grants? Buying a building? Each plan needs different skills.

The skills matrix

A skills matrix is a simple grid that shows what your current board brings and where the gaps are. Put board members' names across the top and skills and qualities down the side. Mark who has what.

Here's an example layout:

(These names are made up.)

Include more than professional skills. The New York Attorney General's guide for directors, Right from the Start, encourages diversity among board members, noting it helps the board serve the mission with a range of skills and interests. Think about lived experience, age, neighborhood, background and language. People who share the experience of those you serve bring knowledge nobody else can.

Independent members

Look at who on your board is "independent," meaning they're not paid by the charity and don't have business dealings with it. The New York Attorney General's internal controls guidance describes independent directors in this way: board members not paid by the organization, and with no financial relationship, themselves or their family, with the organization. Some states require independent directors for certain tasks, such as overseeing an audit. IRS Form 990 asks how many voting board members are independent, and the answer is public.

A board made mostly of the founder's relatives, or of staff, can raise questions from funders and regulators. Aim for a majority of independent members as you grow.

Where to find people

• Your volunteers and donors. People who already give time or money and understand your work.
• People you serve, and their families, where appropriate and welcome.
• Professional groups. Local associations of accountants, lawyers, marketers or HR professionals sometimes encourage members to serve on boards.
• Employers. Some companies encourage staff to join nonprofit boards. Ask local businesses and banks.
• Your community foundation or local volunteer center. Some keep lists of people interested in board service or run board training.
• Other charities' former board members. People whose terms have ended often want a new place to help.
• The Golden Hint Exchange. Members with board experience may be willing to advise you, or to suggest people.

Be open about what you're looking for. "We're a small food pantry looking for someone with accounting experience to join our board" gets better responses than "we need board members."

Talking with candidates

Treat it like a two-way conversation, not a sales pitch.

1. Meet informally first. Share your mission, your plans and your challenges, honestly.
2. Be clear about expectations: how often the board meets, how many hours a month, whether members are expected to give or raise money, and what committee work involves.
3. Share key documents: your latest financial report, Form 990, bylaws and conflict of interest policy.
4. Ask about conflicts: any business, family or other ties to the charity.
5. Invite them to a program visit or to observe a board meeting.
6. Let them decide without pressure. A reluctant board member rarely becomes a good one.

The board then votes to elect the new member, following your bylaws. Bylaws are your charity's own rules for how it's governed, including how directors are elected and how many you need.

Onboarding: the first 90 days

New board members often sit quietly for a year because nobody explained how things work. Avoid that.

Give each new member a welcome pack:

• mission statement and a short history
• bylaws and key policies
• list of board members with contact details and roles
• the current budget and latest financial report
• the most recent Form 990
• the meeting calendar for the year
• minutes from the last few meetings
• our guide on board duties

Then:

• Have the chair or another board member meet them for an hour to answer questions.
• Pair them with a board "buddy" for their first few meetings.
• Ask them to sign the conflict of interest disclosure.
• Give them a first task that uses their skills, soon.
• Check in after three months: how is it going?

Term limits

A term is the length of time a board member serves before they must be re-elected, for example two or three years. Your bylaws set the length. A term limit caps how many terms in a row someone can serve before taking a break.

Term limits help:

• bring in new people and ideas,
• give a graceful way to step down, and
• prevent one person dominating for decades.

Your bylaws set the rules on terms. If yours don't have term limits, your board can vote to amend the bylaws, following the amendment process the bylaws describe. Stagger terms so that only part of the board changes each year, to keep experience on the board.

Board recruitment checklist

• We filled in a skills matrix and know our gaps
• We know which members are independent
• We wrote a short description of what board service involves
• We're looking beyond friends and family
• Candidates see our finances and policies before joining
• New members get a welcome pack and a buddy
• Our bylaws set terms and term limits, and we follow them

If you want help finding skilled people for your board, ask a member charity for help through the Exchange.