Governing Boards and Advisory Boards
The capacity of your board showcases your organization's commitment to accountability, transparency, and effective governance. The people who earn the honor of board service ensure that your social impact is achieved with purpose and precision. Make sure you treat the identification, consideration, and vetting as seriously as you would with your hiring.
If you’re forming a governing board or fiduciary board, the actual roles and responsibilities on a board can vary, based on the size and focus of your impact organization. Here are some key talents and skills I encourage most groups to consider for an effective board of directors:
Governance and Oversight: The board should provide overall strategic direction, ensure legal and ethical compliance, and maintain the organization's mission and values. They should monitor financial health, assess risks, and make key decisions.
Financial Expertise: Having board members with financial knowledge helps ensure responsible budgeting, financial oversight, and proper resource allocation.
Legal Expertise: A legal expert can guide your organization through compliance, contracts, and legal matters, ensuring your activities are within the law.
Fundraising and Development: Board members with fundraising skills can assist in diversifying revenue streams, cultivating donor relationships, and securing funding.
Programmatic Insight: Including individuals with expertise in your organization's field can provide valuable insights into the program/service design, implementation, and impact measurement.
Community Connections: Board members with a wide range of contacts and broad access to a variety of professional networks can help your organization establish and nurture relationships.
Technology and Innovation: Having someone knowledgeable about technology trends and innovation can help your organization boost its effectiveness and efficiency.
Human Resources: Board members with HR experience can provide guidance on staff management, recruitment and retention, and developing an organizational culture that embodies the mission, vision, values, and principles that are desired.
Beneficiaries and Stakeholder Perspectives: Board members who actually represent the voices and perspectives of those who experience and directly benefit from your organization's work have much to offer. Engaging their knowledge serves as a powerful demonstration that your organization practices what it preaches.
Advisory boards differ from governing boards in that they serve as a flexible, non-governing body that provides targeted expertise, strategic counsel, and access to networks. They can be long-term fixtures or formed for specific projects, campaigns, or organizational transitions. So when it comes to advisory board, here are the talents and skills I ask nonprofits/NGOs to consider:
Specialized Expertise: Advisory board members can bring deep, focused knowledge in areas directly relevant to your organization’s work — whether that’s cutting-edge research, emerging policy developments, technological advancements, or sector-specific program design. Their input can strengthen your strategy and help you anticipate shifts in your field.
Strategic Connections: Members with broad and influential networks can open doors to funders, collaborators, policymakers, or media outlets. These connections can accelerate opportunities that might otherwise take years to cultivate.
Fundraising Support: While they do not hold fiduciary responsibilities, advisory board members can still play a role in introducing prospective donors, hosting cultivation events, or lending their credibility to fundraising campaigns.
Community and Beneficiary Insight: Including voices from the communities you serve ensures that your work remains relevant, respectful, and responsive. Advisory board members from these groups can help you test assumptions and strengthen trust.
Thought Partnership: Advisory boards are often a safe space for bold, future-oriented thinking. Members can challenge ideas, explore scenarios, and identify emerging opportunities without the governance constraints that apply to a board of directors.
Advocacy and Visibility: Many advisory board members serve as ambassadors for the organization, helping to amplify your mission in public forums, conferences, and professional networks.
An advisory board that is well-chosen and actively engaged can expand your organization’s reach, deepen its knowledge base, and provide invaluable strategic lift — all while complementing, not competing with, the authority of your governing board.
Determining whether a board of directors or an advisory board is best suited for your organization depends on your organization's needs, aspirations, and specific context. Depending on the laws and regulations in your country/region, particular governance roles may be required with specific obligations/responsibilities determined by the type of organization involved. Always seek the advice of a qualified legal expert to guide your organization's determination in this respect to ensure full compliance with all necessary rules.
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