Heading to Your First Nonprofit Board Meeting? Here's What You Need to Know

Nov 30, 2010 8:20 AM ET

Alice Korngold's Blog

"Alice, I'm at the airport heading to Chicago to my first board meeting. What do I need to know?" asked my friend Paul last week. Paul's a successful Wall Street executive, 42, who recently joined the national board of a major nonprofit. I knew that Paul had already participated in a board orientation. And we had discussed his board service a couple of times. This call was for last minute pointers.

"Oh, and one more thing," asked Paul. "They want me to serve on three committees. What should I do?" I knew that three committees were more than Paul had time for. I also knew that Paul would take his commitments seriously.

"Also, can I ask questions in the meeting?" Here are my nine recommendations to Paul as he waited for his gate to be called.  See here on Fast Company http://bit.ly/hYvfNk

Korngold Consulting LLC assists corporations in building fully integrated, high-impact CSR strategies, including leadership development through nonprofit board service.  Korngold Consulting trains and places business executives on nonprofit boards, and consults to nonprofit boards and leaders to strengthen governance for financial and strategic success.

KORNGOLD10578