the personal journal of Brent Stewart
This short book describes the mindset needed to serve on a volunteer board. I’m part of a church group that is forming a non-profit for a camp. Part of the training for the board was to study this book and to walk through it together.
There’s some theory about the origin of the modern corporation as rising from the “Corpus Cristi” and non-profit boards being a sort of bridge in that path. After the introduction, Mr. Everson gets down to talking about Leadership and how it relates to boards. One of the most important takeaways is the idea that “without the board, you are not the board” meaning that board members have to guard against the impulse to use their position to influence away from a board setting.
Mr. Everson goes into structures, including a typical kind of committee setup. He covers some of the major disfunctions and recommends leadership approaches to avoid them. He also spends some time talking about the types of activities that typically fall within the scope of a board.
It’s an easy book to read and covers good information at the right level for a room full of volunteers. I have enjoyed the mission of the group I’m a part of and I’ve enjoyed the relationships I’ve been able to find through this work. I hope you have a similar opportunity and - when the time comes - recommend this book.