610 Smithfield Street, Suite 400 w Pittsburgh, PA 15222412.227.3200 w www.fragassoadvisors.com

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Being an Effective Board Member

Robert Fragasso, CFP®Chief Executive Officer

Dotti BechtolFiduciary Asset Business Development Officer

Relationship Between the Board and the Executive Director

• Nonprofits are required to have boards– The board is the strategic and

financial leadership– Has legal and ethical obligations– Provides oversight and helps set

policy• Executive Director has

responsibility to keep board informed– ED is responsible for day-to-day

operations and enforcing policies

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Relationship Between the Board and the Executive Director

• Together the Board and the Executive Director– Achieve the goals and mission of

the organization– Board members help ED to be

effective– Common goal of success of the

mission

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Recruiting Board Members

• Identify the kind of expertise needed

• Create a recruitment plan

• Design an orientation

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Working with the Board

• Get to know the board members individually

• Addresses tensions/issues early

• Keep members engaged

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The purpose of a board:

• Act as a fiduciary representing the community

• Provide strategic visioning to accomplish the mission of the organization

• Advocate for the mission and programs of the organization in the community

• Help to guarantee the perpetuity of the organization by raising adequate funding

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The Responsibilities of a Board Member Reflect the purposes of the board

• Act as a fiduciary

• Vision and mission accomplishment

• Advocate

• Fund development

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And to do so, a board member must:

• Learn about the organization

• Contribute time beyond board meetings to serve on committees and participate in ad hoc board projects

• Advocate wherever he or she goes

• Contribute money

• Raise money

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Misperceptions of Some Board Members

1. Serving on the board solely to think big thoughts

2. Others are in charge of raising necessary funding

3. Focus should be only on areas of interest, for example, operations or finance

4. Boards should manage staff

5. I will get business out of being a board member

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Management Mistake that Boards Make

1. Inadequate new member orientation

2. Ongoing failure to promote a complete understanding of the organization’s mission, structure and operations

3. Inefficient board structure

4. Rubber stamp officer elections

5. Lack of or non-staggered term limits

6. Poor communication within the board and to staff and constituents

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Management Mistake that Boards Make

7. Recruiting only on ability to contribute

8. Insufficient or overly-detailed financial data

9. Scarcity of financial expertise on the board

10. Failure to retain experienced board members

11. Most importantly: lack of strategic visioning

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What Can Senior Staff Do?

• Work with board officers and key influencers to identify areas of insufficiency

• Gain outside funding and consulting to correct the board’s structural problems

• Create or activate a Board Governance Committee to create and implement reforms and to recruit appropriate new board members

• Educate the full board on key issues concerning the organization

• Follow your convictions

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What Steps Must the Board Take?

1. Articulate and publicize the mission of the organization

2. Set annual and longer term goals and objectives for accomplishing the mission

3. Identify the correct board and committee

structure

4. Set term limits and procedures for rotation and cultivation of new members

5. Create the proper relationship for working with the agency’s management. That includes objective setting and measurement plus rewards for accomplishing.

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What Steps Must the Board Take?

6. Continue to educate the board’s members on the mission, objectives, operations and needs (especially financial) of the organization

7. Create and manage an effective fund development mentality and action plan within the board. (Gifts and sponsorships are better than events.)

8. Board leaders must coach and mentor newer board members

9. Celebrate successes and then set higher goals – always get better in the service of the organization’s constituency

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Questions and Answers

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Contact Us

Robert Fragasso, CFP®Chairman and Chief Executive Officer412.227.3220rfragasso@fragassoadvisors.com

Dotti BechtolFiduciary Asset Business Development Officer 412.227.3208dbechtol@fragassoadvisors.com

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