Promoting Transparency About Your Operations With Your Board

Your board members guide your team to execute your organization’s mission. Between developing policies and procedures, overseeing your financials, and managing risks, your board has a lot on its plate.

With so many tasks to complete, you may struggle to find time to sit down with your board and look at the bigger picture of your organization. However, it’s crucial to promote transparency about your association’s operations with your board members, no matter how busy your team and board may be.

In this guide, we’ll provide three tips for increasing transparency with your board so you can maintain trust, foster accountability, and ensure members continue to govern your association effectively.

1. Involve them in your strategic planning.

A strategic plan aligns your organization’s goals with its values so you can set your team up for long-term success. While your strategic plan is an important roadmap for every team member, board members are responsible for your mission’s strategy and, therefore, are essential to the planning process. Firsthand involvement will help ensure they understand their roles and responsibilities in driving your mission forward.

To remain transparent about your goals and incorporate board member input, involve your board in every step of the process. Here are the three key steps you can use to easily engage your board members:

• Assess. Start by working with your leadership team and a nonprofit consultant to assess your organization’s current standing, including its history, infrastructure, core programs, and vision for the future. In this stage, your consultant will also survey stakeholders to gather their feedback. Make sure to include multiple board members to collect a variety of perspectives from your board.
• Align. Work with your board and staff members to align your goals and values. Instead of simply setting up a meeting, invite your team to a planning retreat that allows everyone to share ideas and focus solely on your mission. As they do so, your consultant will monitor discussions and help your team reach a consensus.
• Act. Lastly, present findings and provide recommendations on how your organization should act to fortify its operations and mission. The final plan will include responsibilities for your board and leadership team, objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs), and a timeline for completion.

When you acquire new board members, it’s important to keep them fully informed about your strategic plan and ask for their input as well. During orientation, outline your organization’s strategic goals to provide context for board decisions and clarify each board member’s role in working toward these goals.

2. Engage them in the fundraising process.

Since fundraising may be a large part of your organization’s operations, incorporating your board members into the fundraising process allows them to see a different side of your organization and get hands-on experience with your mission that they can take to their next board meeting. They can also keep your organization accountable for responsible fundraising by ensuring all fundraising practices are ethical and aligned with your association’s broader goals and values.

To get your board members involved in your fundraising strategy and process, have them help your fundraising team with:

• Donor cultivation. Your board members can leverage their existing connections to refer potential major donors to your staff. Encourage your board to regularly identify prospects in their networks and introduce these prospects to the fundraising team so staff members can start building relationships with these individuals.
• Donor stewardship. Let board members get to know your donors and show appreciation by involving them in your donor stewardship efforts. They can play a role in your strategy by calling major donors to thank them for their contributions, writing thank-you notes, and updating donors on the specific impact of their gifts.
• Grant writing and research. If any of your board members have experience with grant writing and research, make the most of their expertise to guide your team through the process. Your board can provide support throughout the grant cycle by identifying grant opportunities that align with your goals, assisting with grant writing, and providing feedback on grant applications.
• Feasibility studies. A feasibility study allows your organization to assess its readiness for a large project like a capital campaign. One of the main stages in the feasibility study process is working with a nonprofit consultant to interview key stakeholders about your proposal. Ask your board members for their input before you develop your final case for support.

Your board members already demonstrate their commitment to your association and its values each time they meet and make decisions on behalf of your organization. Strengthen their connections to your cause by promoting transparency about the fundraising process.

3. Conduct a board assessment.

Sometimes, it’s difficult to be objective about your board, especially when they’ve been such dedicated stewards of your mission. To boost productivity and transparency, consider hiring a nonprofit consultant to conduct a board assessment.

While nonprofit consultants offer many different services, one of the top ways they can assist your organization is with board management. Since your consultant is a third party, they can be more forthcoming about the board’s potential areas for improvement and work with your team to hold them accountable for implementing any changes.

Typically, your consultant will help you improve your board management by:

• Evaluating your board’s current performance. To begin the process, your consultant will assess your board’s infrastructure, group dynamics, and committee work to get a sense of how your board operates.
• Developing a new board strategy. Work with your nonprofit consultant to address the challenges and opportunities revealed during the assessment and create an action plan for reaching your objectives.
• Assisting with implementing your new plan. Your consultant can help your team implement board strategy and governance changes and provide leadership guidance and training through the transition.

This exercise promotes transparency by allowing board members to provide feedback on self-performance, group dynamics, leadership, and organizational effectiveness. As a result, the board evaluation process ensures your board is strong, engaged, and ready to fuel your mission.

Don’t forget to show your appreciation for these volunteer leaders. You can use eCards, personalized thank-you notes, and gifts to thoroughly thank board members for their hard work.

As an association leader, it’s your responsibility to empower your board to be the best that it can be so your board members can provide strong strategic guidance in return. By promoting transparency about your operations with your board, you can be confident they’ll make informed decisions that benefit your staff, donors, volunteers, beneficiaries, and overarching mission.