Boring is so far from the reality. My first experience of being co-opted to a Board was a highly unusual affair. I was on maternity leave, wrangling two boys under three and a six-month-old daughter in a trolley round Asda. You can only imagine the scenes. To my great amusement, an older lady accosted me beside the potato stand, crying, “What a natty baby!”. My daughter was dressed head to toe in a secondhand mish mash of boys’ clothes and random knitted items. I was delighted to be accosted. Desperate even. Happened again the next week. I was swiftly invited to tea and duly chatted about my life outside having children, that I was a highly experienced fundraising and marketing professional, itching to get back to work.
Turns out my adopted friend was the chair of a wonderful, well-established charity doing incredible work with disadvantaged young people in East Lothian. They needed fundraising and marketing expertise on the board. I eventually chaired that board and brought about changes and improvements that I came to be very proud of.
It was an extremely steep learning curve. It took a while to get to know my fellow trustees, and to understand their different perspectives. Unusually for me, I kept quiet and listened. In time I grew confident to challenge openly and respectfully those whom I saw as more senior and knowledgeable. They weren’t; they just had a different experience, and they listened to me too.
Even learning the names of the team took a while, let alone getting my head around the finances. Doubts about whether I could contribute quicky ebbed away. It was exciting to offer guidance and advice that I knew could make a difference. The value of being ‘on the other side of the table’ from the executive team showed me what a board was looking for; what kind of questions would be asked and the reasons behind those questions.
Strategic planning at board level was so useful and I took back a lot of learning to ‘the day job’. Working with a strong, diverse team was very powerful. It was far from boring. I now sit on the board for a national literacy charity which delivers a massive range of services and has deep involvement with government.
More learning. More exposure to highly skilled colleagues. More connections and contacts. It’s great.
But new board volunteers can be hard to find. I would wholeheartedly encourage fundraisers to get onto a charity board. In fact, I’d say it’s almost essential. How can you deliver for your board if you don’t have insight into how they operate? And it’s great fun. So next time you’re next to the potatoes at Asda (other supermarkets are available) think on joining a charity board. It might be the start of something great!