March 18, 2015, 2 p.m. ET Join us with Orr Associates, Inc. for a three-part series that will demonstrate how nonprofit leaders can ensure they are building and capitalizing on the power of their boards. Using our experience leading and working alongside some of America's most-admired nonprofits, we will provide you with the tools and resources to develop your board into one that will provide you with strategic support and will lead you to financial security. Presenters: Kelly Dunphy, Vice President Fundraising and Development, Orr Associates, Inc. (OAI); Caite Gilmore, Director, OAI; Craig Shelley, Senior Director, OAI; Juliana Sloper, Senior Director, OAI; and Jenny Taylor, Community Manager, GuideStar USA (moderator)

1. March 18, 2015
Kelly Dunphy
Vice President, Orr Associates, Inc. (OAI)
Craig Shelley
Senior Director, Orr Associates, Inc. (OAI)
Making the Most of Your
Board
Session Two:
Best Practices for
Onboarding and Engaging
Board Members

2. 1. Introductions
2. Recap of Session One
3. The Engaged Board
4. Steps to Engagement
5. Case Studies
6. Q&A
7. Wrap-Up/Preview Session Three
Agenda
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3. Kelly Dunphy
• Vice President, Fundraising and Development, OAI
• 15 years of fundraising experience, 8 years with OAI
• Client projects include:
 Outsourced development leadership
 Board development
 Development planning
 Capital campaigns
 Event fundraising
 Strategic planning
• Serves as Chief Development Officer for Boys & Girls Harbor
• Previously worked at Share Our Strength
About Us
3
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4. Craig Shelley
• Senior Director, OAI
• 17 years of fundraising experience, 2 years with OAI
• Client projects include:
 Embedded executive and fundraising leadership
 Board development
 Development planning
 Event fundraising
• Serves as Executive Director for the New York/New Jersey
Region of College Summit
• Previously worked at the Boy Scouts of America
About Us
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5. Recap of Session One

6. Develop a Committee
Assess your Board
Create Materials for Recruitment
Mine New Board Members
Formulate the Appropriate Strategies for
Recruitment
The Board Recruitment Process
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7. The Engaged Board

8. The Engaged Board
• Board members are personally contributing to your
organization with one of their three largest annual
philanthropic gifts
• Board members are partners in leading the organization.
They lead board meetings, see financials regularly, and
generally know where the organization is in meeting short
and long term objectives
• Board members can articulate the “elevator speech” version
of your case for support
• “Our” replaces “mine” – Our program, our organization, our
donor!!
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9. Steps to Engagement

10. Orientation
Communicate
Regularly and Hold
them Accountable
Hold Effective
Board Meetings
Work Them
Involve Them in
Fundraising
Be Transparent
Have Fun
Steps to Engagement
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11. Have a meeting with the Committee Chair
Assign to committees (if applicable)
Review the Board Handbook
Conduct a site visit (if not done during the cultivation phase)
Hold orientation meetings with ED and Board Chair
1. Orientation
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12. 1. Orientation (cont’d)
• Board Handbook:
 Org Information (history, program descriptions)
 Finances (budget and financial statements)
 Development Plan
 Org Chart
 Board and Staff Directories
 Job Description
 Bylaws
 Recent minutes
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13. • Guidelines:
 Encourage questions, opinions, and feedback
 Be honest and transparent
 Put to work quickly, but don’t overwhelm
 Engage multiple board members in the orientation process
1. Orientation (cont’d)

14. 14
2. Communicate Regularly and Hold
Them Accountable
Regular communication such as biweekly emails
that share progress, good news, successes
Phone calls from the ED
Honest reporting on progress towards goals
•Helps the board make course corrections when needed
Recognize board members for their help and their
successes
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15. • Foster a culture of accountability
 ED should have an annual meeting with each board member to
review their service from the previous year and discuss plans for
the next year
 Board should conduct an annual self-assessment
2. Communicate Regularly and Hold
Them Accountable (cont’d)
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16. 2. Communicate Regularly and Hold Them
Accountable (cont’d)
Elements of Board Assessment
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Mission/Vision
Budget and
Financial Controls
Familiarity with
Program Metrics
Fundraising
Strategic Planning
CEO Performance
Evaluation

17. • Structure meetings so members feel their time is well-spent:
 Substantive, focused agendas
 Discussion time, not just reporting
 “Mission moments”
3. Hold Effective Board Meetings
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18. 3. Hold Effective Board Meetings (cont’d)
– Evolution of Board Meetings
Listening
• Board members
listen to staff or
scripted board
members read
reports
• Little discussion,
few questions
• Nominal
engagement
Discussing
• Board members
participate in
presenting and
discussing
information
• A mix of staff and
board members
using some talking
points lead the
agenda
• Some engagement
Leading
• Board members
lead the agenda, can
speak largely from
knowledge with
some reference to
staff prepared
reports
• Information is
discussed and
decisions made by
the board
• High engagement
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19. • Yes, these are busy people, but if they don't see their roles as
critical to your success, they will drift away to where they
can have an impact
• The best board members want to use their talents to make a
difference
• Communicate your goals and metrics for the year and how
you need their help in achieving them
4. Work Them
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20. 5. Involve Them in Fundraising
A board member’s
philanthropic responsibility:
1. Give
generously
2. Be an advocate
3. Participate in
fundraising
• Identify prospects
• Cultivate /
open doors
• Solicitation
• Stewardship
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21. • Like you would with a major donor, provide board members
with regular updates on the impact of their giving and
fundraising
• More on this in Session Three (March 25, 2015)
5. Involve Them in Fundraising (cont’d)
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22. • It's important that board members hear the challenges as
well as the great accomplishments
• If board members only hear about the great things being
done (i.e., only “the good”) then they may assume that their
talents are not needed
• Share “the bad” and “the ugly” as well
6. Be Transparent
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23. • Let board members know what issues and challenges you're
working on. They may have experience in a particular area
and can help—or know someone who's gone through the
same issue and has some thoughts to help
• Maintaining perspective—by sharing both sides of an issue—
will help show board members that their talents are needed
• And when they help solve an issue, make a big deal about
how they helped—that will provide incentive (and
examples) to fellow board members
6. Be Transparent (cont’d)
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24. • Remember to make time for social activities, too
• Boards that gel and have a collegial culture are more
effective
• Provide opportunities to help board members get to know
each other and find out about common interests and
concerns outside of the organization
• Remember that one of the benefits of board service is the
networking
7. Have Fun!
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25. The Engaged Board

26. The Engaged Board
• Board members are personally contributing to your
organization with one of their three largest annual
philanthropic gifts
• Board members are partners in leading the organization.
They lead board meetings, see financials regularly, and
generally know where the organization is in meeting short
and long term objectives
• Board members can articulate the “elevator speech” version
of your case for support
• “Our” replaces “mine” – Our program, our organization, our
donor!!
26
www.oai-usa.com
#OAIBestBoards

27. Case Studies

28. The Anonymous Board
• Case Study: NYC-based charity serving youth
 75+ board members
 Decades long history of success followed by unexpected and
significant financial challenges
 Limited personal giving by board who typically directed corporate
gifts to the organization or gave under their philanthropic capacity
 How they made it work:
• Asked board leaders for larger ($100,000+) annual gifts and then recognized
and promoted those gifts in front of other board members. Rising tide rose
all boats and the average board gift size grew in 2 years from $1,000 to
$12,000
• Created an active Development Committee with key prominent leaders
who held peers accountable
• Banned staff from scripting their volunteer counterparts at meetings
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29. • Case Study: NYC affiliate of national education
organization
 5 board members. Been a board for 7 years; 3 of 5 board
members including the chair have been there all 7 years
 Initial work funded by one large funder. While board was
personally generous, they were not engaged in raising dollars
 Rare meetings, no committees, limited contact with Executive
Director (4 Executive Directors in those 7 years)
The “We want to help but no one asks”
Board
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30. • Case Study: NYC affiliate of national education organization
 How they made it work:
• Communication:
• Initially weekly and then bi-weekly update emails. In 8-months, personal meetings
for ED with each board member at least 3 times
• Board Recruitment Campaign:
• 3 new members in 8-months with a vibrant pipeline for additional members.
Transitioned to a new chair
• Regular (quarterly) meetings with accountability towards the “Listening-
Discussing-Leading” model
• Currently in the “Discussing” phase with “Leading” on the horizon
• Established new member responsibilities agreed on by the members
including a give and get policy
• Held a friend raising event where each board member was expected to bring
attendees
The “We want to help but no one asks”
Board
30
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31. Send additional questions to:
Kelly Dunphy: kdunphy@oai-usa.com
Craig Shelley: cshelley@oai-usa.com
Q&A

32. Wrap-Up/
Preview Session Three