If you’ve seen our other recent blog about what to look for in an Executive Director, you know that I’ve spent nearly a decade on Main Street. I’ve truly loved my time working with these organizations and watching them make their communities better. In getting to work with these organizations I’m frequently asked about many aspects of an organization, including the board of directors. I’ve been asked this more recently so I wanted to share some of my thoughts about what you should be looking for in a downtown board of directors.
Looking at traits of successful board members, there are a few characteristics that come through. I would say the most important trait is a willingness to put organization above self-interest. There will be times that what is best for the organization may not be the best for their business. Having board members that are willing to work for the common good, even if that means they have to work a little harder themselves is a powerful thing. Most organizations have a standard conflict of interest policy or something similar to it, to let board members know that when they are at the meeting the we before I is expected, but finding a collective group that truly sets aside their personal interests to benefit the whole is something special.
You also want to find successful, busy people. Busy? Yes…busy people! We often get hung up on how busy someone is and say no for them rather than inviting them into our organization and allowing them to work alongside us. We have to stop saying “no” for people and give them the opportunity to be a part of this amazing work we’re doing. Recruiting successful, busy people is infectious. Before you know it, your organization is going to be a flutter with activity.
You also want people who share in the vision of your organization. You want people who see the goal and say “I want to be a part of that”. This doesn’t mean yes men or group think mentality, but people who are truly devoted to making the community better and realize that we all win when the organization wins…even if the credit goes to someone else.
Smart, driven people usually make very good board members. Now, let’s get a few other technical questions out of the way.
How many board members should we have? I have no idea. I cannot tell you with any certainty what is best for your community any more than you could tell us what ours should be. Having said that, I’ve seen everything from 7 to 27. Personally, I think 27 is a little too much. It can be hard to get a quorum, let alone consensus. 7 is probably too few as well. It can lead to too few people sharing the work load and not a lot of buy-in from district businesses. I always like 11 or 13 board members. I prefer an odd number to break ties. In my 7 years with the organization I can’t remember ever actually having a vote that close that we needed the tiebreaker, but it was nice to know it was there and that as an Executive Director I wouldn’t be the deciding factor.
What types of people should be on the board? Yes, you want downtown business owners and employees on your board. A good mix usually has property owners, business owners, a few employees (say of a bank, etc) and a good mix of the businesses in your district. You want your board to be representative of your district. I always liked to have at least one lawyer too, not to provide legal services, but their guidance on issues both for the organization and helping to navigate the municipality was greatly beneficial. I also recommend having representation from outside the district. This gives you some community buy-in as well as some fresh perspectives.
Another quality I would like to talk about is the ability to delegate. This may seem like an easy one, but I have watched more individuals struggle with this more than any of the others combined. Yes, you want people that will roll up their sleeves and work the events, board members that you can call and will come over to help stuff envelopes when the copier breaks, and all of those things. What you do not want is someone who micromanages the staff. As a board, our job is to provide direction and oversight. We’re asking a lot of our staff, and it isn’t an easy job. However, once we hire them we need to entrust the day-to-day operations of the organization to them. Yes, we want goals, we want reviews, and we want engaged conversations. What you want to avoid is being the board member that tells the staff what to do each hour of the day to the point where they lose their passion for the cause and move on. Giving staff the freedom and the empowerment to run the organization can lead to unparalleled success that benefits everyone.
Lastly, it is worth mentioning when talking about board members about something that I am a big believer in. Nearly every board member I’ve encountered has been a volunteer. The path that led them to the board usually starts the same way, “I got involved in one committee or with one event and then…”. As downtowns, we are usually very good at identifying talented people who may be good candidates for committees, committee chairs, and board positions. What we are not so great at is getting people to only fill one role. It is deceptively easy to get someone to take just a little more responsibility until the next thing you know they’re on your board of directors, chairing a committee, on three other committees and working themselves to the bone for the cause. Sound familiar? What happens when that person leaves? Instead of one hole to fill, you’re now scrambling figuring out how you ever got anything done without them and how you are going to cover everything they were doing. It is incredibly important that when we ask a volunteer to take on a new role, that they give up their old role. This doesn’t mean that board members can’t be on committees. On the contrary, I find it important that each board member serve on a committee. This may mean that they aren’t the chair of that committee, or that you also have to recruit a new member to that committee, and so on. This will keep your pipeline of candidates full and make you a stronger organization in the process. It’s important that the organization always be recruiting volunteers to keep the organization running smoothly.
Making sure your board is stocked with engaged volunteers that represent your district well is an ongoing task, and one that helps determine the success of your organization. Making sure you’ve got folks that meet these criteria will help make you successful.
