I serve on a charity board, and I have sat on both sides of the awkward ask. The usual way goes like this. A seat falls empty. Someone says, "Do you know anyone?" A mate gets asked over a barbecue. He says yes to be kind, comes to three meetings, and quietly fades. Everyone regrets it, and nobody says so.
There is a better way to recruit charity board members in Australia, and it is not complicated. It just means doing it on purpose.
Start with a one-page map
Before you ask anyone, work out what you actually need. Draw up a simple one-page skills and connections map. List your current directors down the side. Across the top, list the things a board needs. For example:
- Finance and budgeting
- Legal and risk
- Fundraising
- Lived experience of the people you serve
- Local business and community connections
- Digital and communications
Tick where you are strong. The gaps will be obvious. Then add one more line. What will the next three years ask of this board? A new building, a funding cliff, a change of leader? Recruit for that, not just for today.
Write a one-page role description
People say yes to a clear job. They say no, or yes and then vanish, when the job is a fog. Keep it to one page and cover these points:
- How much time it takes, and how many meetings a year
- The between-meeting job, such as chairing a committee or reading the finance report
- Their legal duties as a director
- That the role is unpaid
- What they get back, such as real influence, new skills, good people and work that matters
Be honest about the time. If you say two hours a month and it is really six, you will lose them by winter.
Where to look
Most boards look in one place, their own friendship group. Widen it.
- The people you serve, and their families. They know what works and what doesn't. Support them well, and make sure the role suits them.
- Local professionals. Ask the accountants and lawyers who already act for charities. They know who is capable and who might be looking for a meaningful way to give back.
- Church and community networks. Service clubs, churches, sporting clubs and neighbourhood groups are full of people who are used to giving time.
- Board-matching services. These exist, and some are free for charities. A quick search will find them.
- Your own volunteers and donors. They already believe in the work. They just have not been asked.
- Your current directors. Ask every director for two names. It takes one meeting and gives you a real list.
The conversation
How you ask matters as much as who you ask. Here is the order I would follow.
- Start with a coffee, not a form. Get to know them.
- Be honest about the state of the organisation, including the hard parts. A good director would rather hear it now than find out later.
- Give them the role description and let them read it in their own time.
- Apply no pressure. Let them go away and think.
- Offer a second meeting with the chair, so they can see who they would be working with.
- Invite them to sit in as an observer at one board meeting before they say yes.
The observer meeting is the step most boards skip, and it saves the most heartache. Both sides get to see the fit before anyone signs up.
One plain note on compliance. The ACNC expects registered charities to check that every responsible person is eligible and not disqualified, so run those suitability checks before anyone is appointed.
Induction
Do not hand someone a folder and hope. A good induction covers the constitution, the finances, the strategy, a site visit so they see the work first-hand, and a buddy. The buddy is a current director who answers the small questions nobody wants to ask in front of the group. Give this a few weeks, not a few minutes.
Keeping them
Recruiting is only half the job. People stay when they feel useful. A few things make the difference.
- Give every director a real job. Not a title. A job, even a small one.
- Run meetings that decide things. Nobody stays long on a board that only listens to reports.
- Thank them. Out loud, and specifically. Unpaid people run on being noticed.
- Review once a year. A short, kind check-in on how it is going for them and for the board.
- Make it easy to leave well. Terms end. Life changes. If someone can step down with thanks and no guilt, they will speak well of you and often come back to help in another way.
A word on diversity
A board that looks like the community it serves makes better decisions. It sees problems earlier and hears what staff and clients are not saying. Funders notice, too. If everyone around your table has the same background, age and story, your map has a gap, even if every skill box is ticked. Look at who you serve, then look at who is at the table.
Where to start
Begin with the one-page map. It takes an hour and tells you what you really need. If you want a clearer picture of where your board stands first, try the free five-minute quick check. And if you would like to talk it through with someone who has been on both sides of the table, book a free hour with me.