Screwtape's 10 Tips for Building a Better Board

 

1. Limit the board to family and friends, people who will support whatever you want to do.
2. If you add more board members, make sure they have a high net worth.
3. Allocate minimal resources to recruiting; just have existing board members ask their rich friends.
4. Don't worry about diversity; 86% of nonprofit board members are white, non-Latinos.
5. Don't worry about whether the prospective board members will commit sufficient time to the organization; you need their money and connections.
6. Don't worry about whether the prospects have the right set of skills and knowledge to govern the organization; you need their money and connections, not their interference.
7. Inform prospects that board service is easy and will require minimal time.
8. Don't inundate prospects with organizational materials; it will only confuse them; these things can wait.
9. Don't ask prospects to submit their qualifications; you need to base the relationships on trust.
10. If someone recruits a prospect, make sure you elect the prospect; don't make enemies.