New process can help identify qualified recruits

• Author: Gene Siciliano
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/ban.31154
• Date: 01 September 2020
• Published date: 01 September 2020

September 2020 • Volume 37, Number 1 3

DOI 10.1002/ban© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC • All rights reserved

New process can help identify

qualied recruits

BY GENE SICILIANO

There are two management

responsibilities in the nonprofit

world that most everyone agrees

are of paramount importance—

fundraising and board recruiting.

They’re so important, in fact, that

we want the best people available

to do them, as long as it’s not us.

In my 20+ years of board ser-

vice, I’ve seen some really effec-

tive recruiting and some pretty

mediocre recruiting. Not surpris-

ingly, mediocre recruiting most

often produces mediocre boards.

And you can only do so much

with board member development

and training, board/staff commu-

nication, commitment of time and

treasure and all the other board-

building tools we have available.

Here’s what I’ve found works,

consistently, year in and year out:

• Objective board member

evaluation. A formal gover-

nance process where the skills

and talents the board needs

are identified through an objec-

tive board member evaluation

and matched against the skills

and talents on the board is best

accomplished by a governance

committee, whose role is evaluat-

ing and improving overall board

performance.

• A committee. Formed annu-

ally and designated as the nomi-

nating committee, this group is

tasked with a primary focus: to

find candidates within the com-

munity who fulfill the identified

skills and talents. This commit-

tee should be clear about the

board’s needs and ideally include

both board members and com-

munity leaders who have deep

and respected contact lists that

can be accessed for candidates.

• An interview process. When

the committee interviews proposed

candidates, it is much more likely

to decipher candidates’ interest,

the way their talents can be best

used, their connection to the mis-

sion, their ability to fulfill all the

responsibilities expected of board

members, etc.

• A timely committee recom-

mendation. A formal and objec-

tive recommendation from the

committee to the governing board,

whose responsibility is to elect

new board members, is most ef-

fective when it is built around a

concerted annual effort in advance

of an annual election of board

members, typically beginning at

the midpoint of the board year.

While many organizations func-

tion effectively despite the lack of

a sound recruiting process, the

challenge to build and maintain

consistent high-quality board

membership requires more. It re-

quires a proven process based on

best practices. That’s how strong

boards build strong organizations

that achieve mission objectives,

year in and year out.

Gene Siciliano is a business

management consultant based

in Los Angeles. His firm, widely

known as Your CFO for Rent, as-

sists privately owned companies

and nonprofit organizations in de-

veloping sound business practices

to support mission objectives. ■

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