A Handbook for Maximizing the Board’s Potential at Small Charities

By M.J. Prest
Senior Editor, Solutions

June 1, 2006 | Read Time: 1 minute

Great Boards for Small Groups: A 1-Hour Guide to Governing a Growing Nonprofit, by Andy Robinson, offers insights into what the best-managed boards can bring to the small nonprofit groups they oversee. The book notes that small charities often succeed because of a dedicated, hard-working group of board members who lend perspective and professional support. It recommends writing a job description to identify the needs the board must fill, diversifying the board, enforcing term limits to keep ideas fresh, and letting trustees employ fund-raising tactics that suit their personalities, rather than making the whole board use the same strategies. Several chapters review ways to fix conflicts of interest, poor attendance, and other problems that frequently plague boards.

Publisher: Emerson & Church, P.O. Box 338, Medfield, Mass. 02052; (508) 359-0019; fax (508) 359-2703; http://www.emersonandchurch.com; 110 pages; $24.95; ISBN 0-889102-04-0.

Today's Top Jobs

About the Author

M.J. Prest

Senior Editor, Solutions

M.J. Prest is senior editor for solutions at the Chronicle of Philanthropy, where she highlights how nonprofit leaders navigate and overcome major challenges. She has covered stories on big gifts, grant making, and executive moves for the Chronicle since 2004. Her work has also appeared in the Washington Post, Slate.com, and the Huffington Post, and she wrote the young-adult novel Immersion. M.J. graduated from Williams College and after living in many different places, she settled in New England with her husband, two kids, and two rescue dogs.