Board Member Orientation

When new members join your board, the more quickly they understand their role and how the organization works, the more they will contribute during their term. Investing in board member orientation can yield great results.
    Hold a new board member orientation session prior to the first regular board meeting after the new board members are elected. This prepares new board members to be more effective from the start. Their first board meeting can then move at a relatively normal pace without experienced members having to wait for new members to be tuned in.
    The majority of the orientation is led by experienced board members. The primary role of the board is to govern the organization. New board members should learn about their role from those who have experience in that role. (Staff work is directed by the board. When staff run the orientation session the employee is training his boss.)

Governance orientation can include many things:

• an overview of the organization’s charter or the Act under which it was formed and its constitution and by-laws
• an overview of the governance model the organization follows the role and expectations which the board has identified for its members and for any committees on which board members sit
• board operational details such as meeting schedule, times, locations, agenda development process, travel and accommodation guidelines, expense account and per diem policies and mechanics, means of communication used for meetings and information sharing, preparing for board meetings, decision-making process (vote or consensus)
• discussion of the current strategic plan
• an overview and detailed review of the current board-set policies, how new policies are developed, and the process for reviewing existing policies the purpose and nature of the annual meeting.

Provide a board handbook.

A board handbook can be an excellent reference tool when it includes items such as:

• an organizational chart showing where the board and any committees fit
• a directory of board members and key staff
• board member roles and responsibilities
• the organization’s most recent strategic plan
• the organization’s constitution or by-laws
• all current policies of the board
• a directory of the organization’s partners or stakeholders in the industry
• a list of commonly used acronyms.

Staff can orient board members to the operational side of the organization, highlighting the main aspects of the work of the organization, including how staff interact with customers. The purpose of this is to make board members aware of how the organization functions and what work it does so they are equipped to monitor the organization’s progress towards achieving the strategic plan—not to prepare the board members to do any operational work.