Nonprofit boards are constantly seeking new board members. After all, most board members have term limits resulting in some degree of empty seats needing to be filled each year. And of course, on top of this, most boards need new officers, at least a chair and maybe a treasurer and/or secretary.
One question that arises as a result of these seat-filling needs is the extent to which board members should know a prospective board candidate or prospective officer?
Let's talk about the officer first. Simply enough, I believe that officer seats should only be filled by a current board member. An officer has leadership responsibility and their familiarity with the organization, its and the board's culture, and the role an officer plays are all critical information pieces to a prospective officer filling their role effectively.
Now, about prospective candidates. I believe that the correct answer is that no one should become a member without somebody in the organization having a working familiarity with the prospect, and without meeting with a group of memebers for an interview. Also, a prospective member should already possess a working familiarity with the organization. The best approach for a prospect to achieve these two goals is by participating actively as a volunteer in the work of the organization or as a board committee or task force member. In summary, I believe that engagement in the organization is an essential credential for every prospect. Engagement demonstrates interest, commitment, skills and knowledge. It just makes sense.
Outside of engagement and more consistent with what I encounter in many organizations is the familiarity by one board member and/or the senior manager as the introduction and gateway to entry on the board. This is certainly positive, but I don't believe enough of a credential for immediate entry. Yes, the "who you know" credential matters, but only as a gateway. I would recommend that a board committee still be responsible for conducting an interview and providing "intelligence" to the board about their impressions and how much the candidate meets the board's needs. And following this, the full board still may want an introduction, if only for social purposes, prior to a vote.
The bottom line: off-the-street recruitment is more likely to result in a negative impact on the culture of a board -- trust will not likely be present or established. Nonprofit boards rely on trust to be effective decision-makers.