Board Life Matters is a national sounding board designed to inspire and engage the next generation in nonprofit board service.
Part of the mission of this blog, with good reason, is to inspire and engage the next generation in nonprofit board service. The BoardSource Nonprofit Governance Index 2007 found that 2 percent of board members were under 30 years old, 36 percent were 30-49, 49 percent were 50-64, and 13 percent were over 65. These statistics suggest a lack of Generation X (generally defined as those born between 1963 and 1980) and Generation Y (generally defined as those born between 1981 and 2002) serving on nonprofit boards. Why?
There are a few sides to the story. Research presented in BoardSource’s Next Generation and Governance Report on Findings found some boards are hesitant to recruit members of Generations X and Y because there is a:
In turn, work we’ve done with organizations promoting board service to Generations X and Y, as well as some informal polling and focus groups, has revealed that some in these demographics are hesitant to pursue board opportunities for the following reasons:
Stay tuned for BoardSource’s Nonprofit Governance Index 2010 to see whether the demographic composition of boards is changing – and for my next entry, which will address the benefits of generational diversity for boards.
Many thanks for this post, Emily! I will definitely share it with my blog readers at http://leadingbydesign.blogspot.com. You may be aware of this article about diversity on boards (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703558004574581851089027682.html),
which is receiving a lot of attention over at the BoardSource group on LinkedIn. Even though the article’s focus is on for-profit boards, the issues are the same for non-profit boards, staffs, and all types of working groups.
as a GenY on two boards there are other structural barriers. perception and culture are two of the biggest.
by culture i mean, 1. not wanting to share authority and decision-making with younger people. 2. boards, board members and E.D.’s not doing a good job of communicating what the benefits of joining a board are.
furthermore, too many existing nonprofit leaders stress the fundraising sides of board membership effectively chilling the interest. there are many more ways of providing leadership, stewardship and vision. and there are more ways of raising funds than knowing laywers, doctors and donors who can write large checks.
I personally would love to be on a board for an arts or GLBT organization, but have never been approached.
In the St. Louis area, it seems that you are not interesting to boards unless you can bring in big money or a major position in a corporation. Most Gen. X and Y professionals are not at that level financial or position level yet. However, what we can offer are fresh ideas and renewed passion to stagnant boards with over-extended members. Many young professionals are eager for the opportunity to serve in order to gain experience, network, and put to work their degrees in non-profit management.
I’m 28 and I volunteer on the board of an art house theatre. Our board is a recent exception to the rule — a significant chunk of members are under 35, a departure from past years.
I certainly agree with some of the reasoning given in this post. In my experience, while many boards might talk about the need for representation of younger generations, few seem willing to actually recruit those board members and face possible disruption of the status quo.
For a board where the average age is 50+, adding a few young voices is likely going to cause some healthy conflict. And while this is usually positive for the organization, some current board members might bristle at the thought of having their positions challenged — even if they like the idea of youth on board.
I began my arts administration career as a volunteer board member. I lived in a small town in Wyoming and was interested in becoming involved and voila it happened. I think it was easy because it was a small community and everyone was respected if they stepped up.
At the age of 26, I was appointed by the Governor to serve on the State Arts Council and was always respected and even was asked to attend many statewide and national events as an arts representative for the state.
And here I am – still working and learning in the arts. Because of my experience, I have the utmost respect for younger voices joining Boards.
It’s not always about raising money and who you know. It’s about keeping it real and pushing your fellow board members to think more expansively about their work and stewardship.
So I challenge you to think about board service and get on with it. You can and will make a difference.
I was excited to see this post, because it piques my interest regarding serving on a board. I work within a facility housing 18 arts related nonprofits, and have wondered how board members are recruited, and what the expectations of a young member would be. In lieu of one board comprised of mainly older members (50+), I was shocked to chat with a couple members who were surprised that people communicate on Facebook, or were unaware of the concept of crowdsourced grants and other relevant technology within our time. It seems to be a benefit to possess an insight on a board as to the younger generation, and the blossoming social spaces that generate new interests and methods of communication.
I look forward to any information regarding the duties and expectations of younger board members, and/or the roles they generate within a board to bring new perspective and ideas to the table.