You joined a nonprofit board. Here is what you are actually responsible for.
Someone asked you to join the board because you care about the mission and you seemed competent. Nobody mentioned that you now have a legal duty of care and loyalty to the organization, that the 501(c)(3) status depends on filings and rules the board is supposed to understand, that the executive director reports to you and not the other way round, and that the polite expectation is that you will help raise money.
Board service is governance, not management, and the difference is where most boards go wrong. A good board sets direction, hires and evaluates the executive, approves and monitors the budget, ensures compliance, and raises the resources the mission needs. It does not run programs, redo staff work, or rubber-stamp whatever is on the agenda. Doing it well takes a few hours a month and a clear understanding of the job.
These guides are for new board members, board chairs, treasurers, executive directors working with their boards, and founders building one. Fiduciary duties in plain language, board recruitment and structure, the finance and compliance basics every director should recognize, fundraising without a development department, bylaws that work, meetings that decide things, and starting a nonprofit properly from scratch.
Sound familiar?
- You are a new board member and nobody has explained what fiduciary duty actually requires of you.
- The board is tired, the same three people do everything, and recruitment has stalled.
- You need to raise money and the organization has no development staff.
- The 501(c)(3) filings, the bylaws, and the minutes are behind, and someone has to fix it.
- The board is doing the executive director's job, or the executive director is doing the board's.
- You are starting a nonprofit and want to get the foundations right the first time.
Nonprofit Boards
16 resources for this
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Building a Nonprofit Board That Governs, Fundraises, and Doesn't Implode A Practical Guide to Recruiting, Structuring, and Managing the Board Your Mission Deserves Practical guide Guide · 32 pages
Building a Nonprofit Board That Governs, Fundraises, and Doesn't Implode
Recruit, structure, and manage the board your mission deserves.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Nonprofit Financial Management Budgets, Reporting, and Staying Legal: A Complete Guide for Treasurers and Executive Directors Practical guide Guide · 32 pages
Nonprofit Financial Management
Get nonprofit financial management right: budgets, reporting, and staying legal.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Nonprofit Fundraising for Small Organizations A Practical Guide to Sustainable Revenue Without a Development Department Practical guide Guide · 32 pages
Nonprofit Fundraising for Small Organizations
Get nonprofit fundraising for small organizations right: sustainable revenue without a development department.
Private Professor Small Business & Operations Organizational Record-Keeping What to Save, What to Shred, and How to Organize It All Practical guide Guide · 30 pages
Organizational Record-Keeping
Learn what to save, what to shred, and how to organize it all.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Planning and Running an Annual General Meeting The Complete Operational Guide to Your Organization's Most Important Governance Event Practical guide Guide · 30 pages
Planning and Running an Annual General Meeting
Plan and run an annual general meeting: your organization's most important governance event.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Planning and Running School Fundraisers That Actually Work The PTO Leader's Guide to Raising Real Money Without Burning Out Your Volunteers or Parents Practical guide Guide · 30 pages
Planning and Running School Fundraisers That Actually Work
Raise real money without burning out your volunteers or parents.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Running Effective HOA Board Meetings The Practical Guide to 90-Minute Meetings That Actually Accomplish Something Practical guide Guide · 30 pages
Running Effective HOA Board Meetings
Run effective HOA board meetings: 90-minute meetings that actually accomplish something.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Succession Planning for Small Organizations Building an Organization That Thrives Beyond Any Single Person Guide + worksheets Guide · 30 pages
Succession Planning for Small Organizations
Build an organization that thrives beyond any single person.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer The Nonprofit Board Member's Guide to Actually Being Useful How to fulfill your fiduciary duties, contribute meaningfully, and avoid being the director everyone dreads Practical guide Guide · 32 pages
The Nonprofit Board Member's Guide to Actually Being Useful
Fulfill your fiduciary duties, contribute meaningfully, and avoid being the director everyone dreads.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Writing Grant Proposals That Get Funded A First-Timer's Guide to Finding, Writing, and Winning Grants for Small Nonprofits Practical guide Guide · 32 pages
Writing Grant Proposals That Get Funded
Find, write, and win grants for small nonprofits.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Youth Sports Fundraising and Sponsorship A Complete Revenue Playbook for Volunteer Coordinators Who Need Real Money, Not Just Good Intentions Playbook Playbook · 32 pages
Youth Sports Fundraising and Sponsorship
Work through the youth sports fundraising and sponsorship step by step, and leave with a plan you can act on.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Robert's Rules of Order for People Who Don't Have Time for Robert's Rules The 20% of Parliamentary Procedure That Handles 95% of Real Meetings Practical guide Guide · 30 pages
Robert's Rules of Order for People Who Don't Have Time for Robert's Rules
Learn the 20% of parliamentary procedure that handles 95% of real meetings.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Writing Bylaws That Actually Work A Practical Guide to Creating Governing Documents That Protect Your Organization and Don't Gather Dust Guide + worksheets Guide · 30 pages
Writing Bylaws That Actually Work
Create governing documents that protect your organization and don't gather dust.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer The New Executive Director's Survival Guide A Practical Framework for Leading Your First Nonprofit from Day One Practical guide Guide · 32 pages
The New Executive Director's Survival Guide
Lead your first nonprofit from day one.
Private Professor Career & Leadership Your First 30 Days in a Role Nobody Trained You For A practical starter guide for anyone suddenly in charge Guide + worksheets Guide · 32 pages
Your First 30 Days in a Role Nobody Trained You For
Get through your first 30 days in charge without a costly early mistake.
Private Professor Community & Volunteer Starting a Nonprofit From Scratch The First 120 Days From Mission to Operational 501(c)(3) Practical guide Guide · 30 pages
Starting a Nonprofit From Scratch
Start a nonprofit from scratch: the first 120 days from mission to operational 501(c)(3).
Questions
Before you choose
What does fiduciary duty mean for a volunteer board member?
Three things: care (show up prepared, ask questions, make informed decisions), loyalty (put the organization's interest ahead of your own, disclose conflicts), and obedience (follow the mission, the bylaws, and the law). Meeting those duties is mostly about attending, reading the materials, and speaking up. The board member's guide covers each one with examples of what meeting the standard looks like in practice.
Am I expected to fundraise?
Almost always, yes, though what that means varies. At minimum, most boards expect every member to give something and to help open doors. The fundraising guides in this topic show how a board without a development department builds steady revenue: asks, sponsorships, grants, and events, without running the same raffle every year.
What should a treasurer or finance committee actually look at?
A budget approved before the year starts, monthly statements compared to it, cash on hand, restricted versus unrestricted funds, the annual filing, and internal controls that stop one person from handling money alone. The nonprofit financial management guide is written for treasurers and executive directors without an accounting background.
How do I start a nonprofit properly?
Incorporate, adopt bylaws, seat a real board, apply for tax-exempt status, open the accounts, and build the operating basics before you run a single program. The first-120-days guide takes you from mission to operational 501(c)(3) in order, so the paperwork does not catch up with you later.
