Should A Nonprofit Board Get Evaluated?

 Why Does it Matter? 

     One of the most important relationships that exist in the nonprofit world is the relationship between the Executive Director and the board. This collaboration and partnership really is one of the most critical determinants of organizational success.  That being said, this relationship also comes with its own unique challenges.  Think about it… It’s really not normal for someone to have upwards of a dozen direct bosses, and yet, that's exactly what it can feel like to the nonprofit leader who reports to an entire board of 8-12 different people. Therefore, some of the most foundational, (and often overlooked) work you can do as a nonprofit is to intentionally strengthen and clearly define these relationships. 

You don't have to reinvent the wheel. 

        So, today I want to introduce you to a best practice- a tool that should be used in that relationship. That tool is the board self assessment.

     If you’re not familiar with this, it's a tool that can be used to help evaluate how well the board is governing. It’s less about doing “well” or doing “poorly”, and more about assessing whether the board has effectively addressed all the needs that are strategically critical to the nonprofit's focus in the future. 

 Peter Drucker a well-known authority on leadership, said it well…

  “Self-assessment is the first action required of leadership: the constant reshaping, constant refocusing, never being really satisfied. And the time to do this is when you are successful. If you wait until things start to go down, then it’s very difficult.”

 And he also said…

“Self-assessment can and should convert good intentions and knowledge into effective action- not next year, but tomorrow morning.” 

Board Self-Assessment Tools for Nonprofits

So, here’s a few sources I want to share with you that offer good board governance self-assessments:

•    Board Source -  Offers nonprofit board self-assessment as well as education, resources, and peer-to-peer community for nonprofit boards
• National Council of Nonprofits Provides tools, templates, and resources for nonprofits along with relevant policy analysis and trends
• Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability This is my favorite resource! You can find a snapshot of their board self-assessment resources here. In the video version of this post, you can see an example of the ECFA’s NonprofitBoardScore assessment results, which actually measure things like governance structure and style, faithfulness in executing duties, intentionality, strategy, synergy, and culture.

     I hope that that gives you a clearer idea of what a board self-assessment could look like and how it could be helpful in strengthening the strategic focus of your board. As we approach the end of the calendar year, It’s a great time to take a look at your options and select the tool that will be the best fit for your organization.