What every nonprofit nominating committee member needs to know
A great board of directors makes the difference between a nonprofit that can grow and achieve its mission and one that simply stumbles along. But how can an organisation ensure its board comprises engaged, enthusiastic and energetic board members — and who is responsible for finding them?
Nominating committees play vital roles for their mission-driven organisations. Typically, these committees recruit board members, take the lead in board evaluations and succession planning and help develop policies. Nonprofit boards function best when the boardroom is continually filled with new ideas, vibrant personalities and a variety of personal and business experiences. Nominating committees make that possible.
Let’s take a deeper look at the committee’s responsibilities and best practices for committee service.
Nominating committee responsibilities
The bylaws’ committee charter outlines the duties and responsibilities of the nominating committee (among other committees). Responsibilities of the nominating committee can include:
- Creating and developing policies and submitting them for board recommendation. Nominating committees may also develop policies for board members’ giving and fundraising expectations.
- Writing descriptions for board officers, board members and committee charters for standing and ad hoc committees.
- On an as-needed basis, evaluating the board’s term limits and modifying them if needed for board efficiency or to accommodate the changing size of the board.
Additionally, board presidents and board secretaries often call on the nominating committee to assist with board orientation. Nominating committees can be instrumental in helping new board directors get acclimated to their board duties and get acquainted with the other board members. Since nominating committees were responsible for recruitment, they may be the best ones to assign a mentor for new board directors.
Also, keep in mind that the importance of the nominating committee demands that boards choose a committee chair with strong leadership qualities. Nominating committee members should be chosen for their commitment to growing the membership.
Nominating committee guidelines for board director recruitment
There are a number of factors nominating committees need to juggle to support their nonprofits successfully.
- Respect the volunteerism. Nominating committees must continually be mindful of the fact that board directors are volunteers. No matter how committed to the organisation they may be, personal or other issues may cause them to want or need to separate from their board duties.
- Recruit continuously. Nonprofit board positions are not as solid as paid board positions. Therefore, it’s vital for nominating committees to be continually recruiting board directors so that they have a host of resumes to choose from, in the event of a term ending or the unfortunate situation of an unexpected board director resignation. It’s the nominating committee’s responsibility to solicit prospects for board vacancies, research their backgrounds and start the process of grooming them for possible board service.
- Keep board composition in mind. Nominating committees must balance many issues when forming boards. Best practices for board composition require boards to have diversity of gender, race, ethnicity, age, religion, skills, experience and other factors. Board candidates without existing board experience sometimes make the best board directors because they are excited, motivated and eager to learn about the world of governance.
- Make a good match. In forming the short list of potential board candidates, the nominating committee must assess how well each candidate aligns with the organisation’s mission and objectives. The board may offer some assistance in informing the nominating committee about the types of skills the board needs. Executive directors or CEOs also often have valuable input about candidates.
As Wayne Elsey, a nonprofit expert, emphasizes, “The nominating committee can be very powerful because it essentially develops the policy around how the board operates, recruits new members and evaluates board performance.”
“The nominating committee can be very powerful because it essentially develops the policy around how the board operates, recruits new members and evaluates board performance.” – Wayne Elsey, nonprofit expert
Setting guidelines for board evaluations
Before nominating committees can get to work recruiting new board members, they need to be aware of the talents, abilities and experiences they already have on the board. The best way to do this is to conduct or oversee regular board self-evaluations. Evaluations will pull out the existing board’s strengths, weaknesses, skills and experience. This information will identify gaps in the board’s collective skill set.
First, nominating committees need to come up with a process for how to conduct the evaluations and what types of questions will elicit the information they need. Nominating committees will usually ask questions of board members about their skills, talents, attendance, personal giving and willingness to draw their personal and business networks into the organisation.
Nominating committees may decide to evaluate the whole board, individual directors or both. A popular strategy is to evaluate the full board every year and to evaluate individual directors about every three years or so. Your board management solution can facilitate this process.
Nominating committees and succession planning
Succession planning is a vital process for keeping the board refreshed and all board seats filled. As noted earlier, recruitment must be a continuous process, and nominating committees must ensure new prospective directors are a good match for the organisation’s mission and vision.
Having distinct guidelines for how nominating committees go about identifying board directors is a good policy for all nonprofit organisations. Formal processes promote consistency and give everyone a good comfort level with the process.
However, flexibility is important for this process:
- An organisation’s goals and priorities can shift over time, so nominating committees should evaluate their plans periodically
- To keep directors engaged and contributing effectively, keep updated information about directors’ skill sets and ensure they have access to board development opportunities
Boards should work to develop a sense of trust among board directors. For the good of the organisation, board directors should make the nominating committee aware when circumstances may arise that cause them to resign or retire from the board. Nominating committees will appreciate having additional time to seek a replacement.
Additional guidelines for nonprofit nominating committees
A few more tips will keep nonprofit nominating committees operating at peak performance.
Plan across all ranks and positions
In recruiting board directors, nominating committees should be on the lookout for qualified board directors.
Vet candidates for officer positions
See which of them may be able to fill leadership spots, either now or in the foreseeable future. The board chair/nominating committee relationship is of particular importance.
Develop a culture of learning and continued board development
Work mentoring, shadowing and job rotation into your board development cycle so that board members gain experience and become more well-rounded.
Create an emergency succession plan
If a key officer, board director or committee member resigns suddenly, make sure you have a plan to replace them at the earliest opportunity. Look for qualified people who can step in and fill big shoes until the nominating committee can find a successor for the long term.
Using technology to support nominating committee work
Your organisation’s board management software can support the committee’s work in a number of key ways. BoardEffect offers these opportunities:
- For board development, keep materials and links for onboarding and continuing education offerings in the solution so directors can drive their own learning. Onboarding checklists can be offered in the dashboard for new members.
- The built-in surveying tool can be used to gather bio and skills information, as well as collect data for board evaluation.
- Secure workrooms allow committee members to meet privately for recruiting and evaluation discussions.
At Diligent, we understand the crucial role the nominating committee plays in ensuring an organization can meet its goals. BoardEffect is designed with features to support the entire nonprofit team in working for the greater good.
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