Ten Biggest Mistakes Boards and Executives Make

by Jan Masaoka from Blue Avocado:
"To err is human," and as we all ruefully know, nonprofit board members and executive directors are typically human. Here are some of the biggest mistakes we make:
1. Falling in love with the executive director and letting love diminish critical thinking: Even if you have the world's greatest CEO, that CEO will benefit from your bringing your scrutiny and thinking to the organization's work and to his or her performance. Being in love is great, but bring up the issue of getting the dishes done.
2. Neglecting the recruitment of strong replacement board members: Let's face it, recruiting new board members isn't the most fun part of board work. For a micro-burst of motivation, think about this: what cool person would you like to meet . . . that you can contact using board recruitment as the excuse? (see Blue Ribbon Nominating Committee for Your Board)
3. Lacking a personal vision for the organization and the cause: it's not enough to support the organization's vision for itself and its work; what is your personal vision? For instance, what do you want to see occur for children with disabilities? For the national parks? For poor families? For the politics of the Middle East? If you let your personal vision inform your work on the organization's board, you will be a more strategic board member, and you'll inspire yourself. Try thinking about your personal vision for just 2 minutes.
4. Limiting your attention to your organization: A McKinsey poll of Fortune 1000 corporate boards found that board members felt they had enough (even too much) information about their companies, but hardly any information about the industries in which their companies compete. As nonprofit board members, we need information about trends in Alzheimer's care, about business models used by other legal aid societies, about how other Friends of Libraries are raising money from individuals. Sometimes we have this because we are clients, nonprofit leaders in the same field, or constituents of the cause, but if we don't, we need to insist on getting it.
5. Paying the executive either too much or little. In other words, not attending to how CEO salary affects the organization's future. If you pay too much, you can keep a semi-competent person in the job forever. If you pay too little, you will have a hard time recruiting a successor. (How Much to Pay the Executive Director)
6. Getting seduced by perks of board membership: If someone is paid significantly for being on the board (rare in nonprofits but common in foundations), or gets great perks (such as expensive gifts, meeting movie stars, getting free access to an organization-owned mountain lodge), that person will be very, very reluctant to rock the board or to contradict the CEO. As one devious new CEO put it, "I'm going to shower them with free stuff and by the end of the year they'll be eating out of my hand."

Okay, now: what are the biggest mistakes that executive directors make with their boards?