How to Build a Collaborative Nonprofit Board Team

For nonprofit organizations to effectively fulfill their mission they require a collaborative board team. Collaboration can be a difficult task collaborative nonprofit board team for many boards. This article outlines some key suggestions for building and fostering an effective collaborative board.

Communicate clearly with new members regarding their roles and responsibilities. It is essential to clarify each partner’s role in the relationship and clear any confusion. This will ensure members actively participate in meetings and are prepared for discussions, and fully agree with the vision and goals. It is also essential to clarify the financial expectations of new and existing members. This will facilitate a healthy debate and assist in managing expectations.

Nonprofits have a small resources, staff, and expertise to complete all the things they would like to achieve. Collaboration with other nonprofits allows them to reach a larger audience and have a greater impact. However, nonprofits must be cautious about the projects they want to collaborate on and ensure that all parties are benefitting. This will help to achieve positive results and create win-win outcomes.

In the case above, Family Focus & CYC were able to leverage their resources to offer more services. Both organizations were able expand their reach and help more families without having to increase their budgets. It also allowed CYC and Family Focus to refer new clients. This partnership led to an increase in the number of families being served and an overall improvement in society than either organization would have been able to accomplish on its own.