I have been thinking about the last crisis in 2008, how it impacted nonprofit organizations, and what lessons could be learned. I reached out to several people who I thought would provide good perspective, people who have served on many boards and as funders. In this post, they offer their insights from the last crisis as well as thoughts about this one.

I interviewed in alphabetical order: (See bios below.)
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• Robbie Bach, former President of the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft and currently a speaker, author, consultant, and nonprofit board member.
• Michael Brown, Chief Architect of Civic Commons at Seattle Foundation and a nonprofit board member.
• Phyllis Campbell, Chairman for the Pacific Northwest for JPMorgan Chase and Co.  and former President and CEO of Seattle Foundation.
• Jon Fine, former CEO of United Way King County and currently a board member, professor, and consultant.

“Editor’s note: Our community includes many exceptional leaders. From time to time, Valtas gives voice to them by including their commentary in our blog. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!” ​

How do you define an “effective board member”? (What makes a board member a good one?)

​An effective board member actively contributes their time, treasure, and/or talent. 

The WSCPA Not-For-Profit and Health Care Conference is an annual broadcast to keep you up to speed on issues in the ever-changing NFP and health care arena.
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During the two-day conference attendees can select from different tracks to ensure that the information is relevant and useful. Options include sessions on GAAP, internal controls, advocacy, employee benefits and much more. The conference is also a place to mix and mingle with friends and colleagues at the networking reception on Tuesday evening. 

You have found the non-profit board you want to join – now what?!?

There are still several steps you should take to ensure the right fit for you and for them. ​​Here are five best practices to help you on your way.

Now that you’ve defined your passion (as discussed in Part 1), you need to find the right non-profit organization to volunteer for as a board member.    

The many ways

There are many ways to identify potential non-profit organizations that will make good candidates for you to choose from, including:

Since my early days in corporate America working with Fortune 500 firms, I have been involved in the world of non-profit organizations as a volunteer. I’ve been a member and served on numerous committees and boards. My career eventually led me to work for several non-profit organizations. As an employee, I not only worked directly with executive directors and board members, I was also actively engaged in developing boards and recruiting board members.