How do you move a board forward in growing a culture of generous giving?
How do you move a board of directors or trustees forward in growing a culture of significant giving?
I wish I could give you a 10-step plan, but instead, I am going to provide you with some specific things to contemplate and then take action on carefully over time.
Different goals require different boards.
The first thing I try to help people understand is that ministry organizations require different types of boards.
Some organizations need a doctrinal or theological board or a large contingent that is very grounded in that to maintain their mission over generations. These types of boards are typically not seen as mega-donors but rather as protective boards.
They hold trust in the mission.
Other boards need specific expertise, and therefore, skill is at their center.
In the non-profit world, the tendency and the teaching of most experts is that you need a board of major givers who will give and get.
Different boards have distinct cultures; changing them is exceptionally challenging.
It does not happen overnight.
You may have a perfect view in your head of what the board should do or should be doing or should become.
However, many a leader and many a board chairman have broken upon the rock of the board culture already established.
I see tremendous amounts of time and energy wasted because people are obsessing over who or what they wish their board were. “Oh, we could raise so much more money if the board were doing this and if they were giving more,” or “We only have this percentage of board members giving.”
It is essential to understand that this is a cultural thing.
Establishing a policy that requires all board members to give or donate at a certain level does not fix this problem.
A board’s existing culture will take time, patience, and genuine effort to shift.
Especially here in the United States, non-profit boards typically perpetuate themselves, meaning good or bad, whatever the culture, it continues.
It is not going to change overnight.
Remember, this is a journey, not something you set once and then forget. You must think years ahead; who is rotating off and who is on the committees that are growing into these new roles.
The effective leaders I know who have stayed in organizations for 10, 20, 30, and 40 years continually develop relationships among the board, potential board members, and future board members. They are thinking way, way down the road, because a single wrong board decision by a new board member can create significant cultural challenges for the board.
Stir up board involvement.
Board involvement in development is a force. Yet it is the most underutilized and fast-disappearing aspect of our philanthropic culture in America.
It is so frustrating.
Studies show that volunteer involvement in fundraising peaked post-WWII and has continued to decline as the so-called ‘professional fundraisers’ have risen. So, that being said, though, the reality of the impact that a board can have, or a board member can have, in growing giving is astonishing. It is an unrivaled weapon in the war to advance your ministry forward in terms of greater success. There is nothing like it.
The problem is that the number of people willing to volunteer who say they don’t want to ask for money or are uncomfortable asking for money continues to grow. It is getting harder and harder to find them.
Encourage board members. Stir them up.
Say, “This isn’t about a board member becoming a fundraiser, but rather a board catching a glimpse of the unbelievable impact that they can have by asking people to come and see, stop, look, listen, and let me share with you why they are on the board. I want to share with you why I am committing so much time and energy to this, why I am giving at whatever level it is, why I am giving my time, and why I am giving my money”.
Remind Mr. or Mrs. Board Member, “You are not a fundraiser; you are an inspiration. A board member position is unpaid; you are committing time, energy, and money to this, and your presence, showing up and opening your mouth and speaking authentically about that, changes people. It does it as no other staff person can.”
It is not an expertise issue, it is not being slick, it is not trying to sell to people – it is just showing up and sharing your heart about why in the world you are involved in this.
If an individual can’t clarify and share their why for being a part of your ministry, why in the world are they on this board?
It is certainly not for the pay; it is probably not prestigious, and it probably doesn’t give them any political clout.
There is a reason: when you show up and share authentically, it changes people. It really does, and the giving will follow.
Leaders, don’t get fixated on shifting board culture overnight; it takes time.
Board members have no idea how vastly they underestimate the impact they can have individually until they start showing up and telling people why in the world they bother when they stop, look, and pay attention to what God is doing in the organization.
I hope that is an encouragement to you. I hope I have challenged you a little bit, and I thank you for letting me step into a topic I get asked about all the time but don’t often unpack. I hope it is helpful.
Let me hear from you and keep up your fantastic work. Thanks for letting me be part of it.
