Nonprofit Board Training 101 - Everything You MUST Know

You may have a well-established nonprofit board that is...a little disengaged...to put it nicely, OR you may be starting a nonprofit organization for the first time. Selecting strong board members is a key first step in the future of your organization so they can prepare you for success, but are you preparing them for success?

Board members join your organization as a way of demonstrating they would like to help with your mission, but what if they need help? Not everyone who joins a board for the first time is a seasoned nonprofit professional. They may not know what they don't know, or they may be unwilling to ask for help, training, and support. The solution we've found working with hundreds of nonprofit boards all over the country is to have a robust onboarding (excuse the pun) process and an ongoing supportive relationship to keep them trained, informed, engaged, and feeling appreciated for their volunteer service.

Ideally, nonprofit board training happens out of the gate, at the very first meeting each member attends and perhaps even before that as they are recruited to serve. That perfect reality isn't always possible, and most nonprofit professionals inherit and existing group of people with varying levels of engagement, and that's okay too!

Nonprofit staff can conduct a board training at the inception of the group or at literally any other time with strong results in either case. Some organizations love to do an annual board retreat and incorporate the training into that session, so that new and old members alike receive ongoing support and information. To conduct the perfect board retreat, it only takes a few simple steps.

Here are the most important aspects of conducting a single board training session OR incorporating board training into your regular board meeting routine:

1. Set expectations on time commitment - How much time is truly being asked of them? Be honest and up front. We tend to downplay the amount of work a board requires, or we have sneaky additional work that pops up: an event committee, organizational events to attend, fundraising, outreach and community work, etc. These are all great things, actually, and perfect jobs for your volunteer board, but just make sure they know that from the start. If you tell them what the time commitment is and follow through precisely, you will earn their trust, and if you undersell how much time they are committing, you'll lose quality members every year.

2. Set expectations of fundraising (giving AND asking) - Is your board responsible for fundraising? Do they have a minimum donation amount every year? Hopefully they both give and ask, but we have to make sure we have that conversation in the beginning as well. They can only commit to something if they know exactly to what they are committing, so during the recruitment process, have a brief conversation about the rules and expected giving.

3. Actually train them how to ask for money - as fundraising professionals, that part of our job may seem easy or automatic, but even if we recruit the most successful business owner in town, they may have never asked for a charitable gift before. Most of the time, if someone is uncomfortable asking for money, instead of asking for help, they will just silently not participate in fundraising. This is frustrating for the staff and board member alike, so whether they are an expert development professional or a first-timer, conduct solicitation trainings at least annually, so your board feels empowered and comfortable with the process. They may really want to go out and ask, but if they don't know the basics, they will shy away every time.

4. Arm them with a ton of information about your mission - As ambassadors for your charity in the community, they should be the absolute experts on what you do. They may know quite a lot about your overall operations, but the more they know about your day to day, yearly goals, and future plans, the more they can advocate for you out in the community, and the more connected they will feel to the mission. People usually join boards because they want to join a group of people like them who want to do good in the world, and the more you can connect them, the more they can do for you. Having a written packet for them is helpful, so they can continue to learn and connect outside the first orientation and training.

5. Recognize and steward them like donors - We tend to put our top donors on a pedestal and are usually great about following up and thanking them, but board members should be thanked also, as often as possible. At your next board training, try highlighting or spotlighting a specific member and what they've been able to do for the organization. People love to be recognized in front of peers, and it will encourage the others to stay engaged. We try to recognize a different person at each meeting!

6. Share stories - Nothing connects people to a mission or each other like story. We learn new information through story, and we know a story about a single person our nonprofit has helped is far more powerful than any statistic about how many people we've helped. As you train your board, remind them of their "why" and share the "why" of others as often as possible to tug on those heartstrings.

7. Bring in outside help - Nothing is a return on investment quite as fast as having a professional train, excite, and empower your team to raise funds and spread your mission in the community. Sometimes it helps to have a third party come in for a day, afternoon, or even an hour, and share the latest techniques and tools with your board. Learning the basics of how to identify donors, set up meetings, and ask for money is one of the most profitable upgrades your nonprofit can make. It results in having your closest volunteers become a revenue generating asset for your organization, and it will help the staff and leadership feel supported in growing the mission.

And bonus suggestion: Keep all of these in your annual pipeline. A one-off board training is powerful, but even more useful is continual support from your staff and leadership. Have development and fundraising training scheduled throughout the year (at least annually) and keep your board members front of mind. An investment in good people is one of the safest we can make as nonprofits.

Have more questions or want more information on board training? Join us at our fundraising conference as we cover more on nonprofit boards as well as other topics to level up your fundraising and bring more revenue to your organization.