Women's Exchange of Washtenaw

Although these comments came up during out February Exchange “Women in Volunteer Leadership Roles,” the information certainly remains relevant to women who are trying to balance work, life, AND volunteer commitments.  –

In general, responsibility for maintaining work-life balance is a two way street:
The volunteer must maintain boundaries, and the non-profit must be realistic and clear about what is expected of a board member.

FOR BOARD MEMBERS
Questions a board member (or potential  board member or committee member) should be asking:

• What is expected of me?
• What can I realistically give to the organization, given my other obligations?
• Do I want to be a leader or a worker bee?

Once you determine these answers, follow these tips:

• Set boundaries and say no if you can’t do something.  It’s better than promising and then not following through, leaving others to scramble around to fill the gaps
• Be careful of the organizations you get involved with.  If you are a Type A person and the organization is laid-back, you may drive each other crazy, even if you believe in the cause.  Maybe you need to write a check to that org, and find another one to be involved with as a board member.
• Interview the non-profit before you commit.  And don’t be afraid to ask for financial information.  Depending on the organization, the board may be financially liable for parts of the organization.
• Don’t over-commit.  It may be better to give 100% to one organization, instead of 10% to 10 different organizations.
• If you don’t want to utilize your professional skills in your board position be clear about that.  For example, if you are a lawyer, but don’t want to spend all of your volunteer time doing legal stuff because you want a break, make sure you set proper boundaries.
• If you are unable to give away professional services as part of your board service, make sure that is clear.

FOR NON-PROFITS
Questions a non-profit should be asking itself:

• What do we need from our board members?
• How are their skills and time best utilized?
• How much time are they expected to give per month?
• Are we using their time wisely in meetings?
• Is our style a good fit with our board members’ personalities?

Once you determine these answers, follow these tips:

• Develop a communication plan to maximize efficiency.  Who is in charge of setting agendas? Who sends emails? How far in advance are meetings scheduled?  Can you use electronic communication tools like Google groups to make things easier?
• Try not to have too many cooks in the kitchen – set a clear organizational structure for your board and subcommittees.
• Make sure the mission of your board is clear and repeated often.
• Recruit people who have the skills you need and are passionate about your cause.
• Consider writing job descriptions for your board members so the expectations are clear.
• Create opportunities for differing levels of commitment so people can participate at different levels without letting you down.
• Don’t under-utilize your board – they may have connections to help you get other things done in their organization.
• Don’t assume that board members want to do their “every day job” as part of their board service.  A web designer on your board may not want to be stuck designing your non-profit’s website for free.
• Be careful of people who are involved in too many non-profits – they may be spread too thin, but are too nice to say no to you.