Archive for the CEO Forum Category
Somewhere in the recent past you said yes to that friend or colleague who asked you to serve on the board of a nonprofit. After several meetings you find yourself questioning why. Here is what I recommend you consider before saying yes:
- Does the mission of the organization resonate with you? If the answer is no, keep on looking. It is very hard to honor your commitment if you don’t believe in what you are working for. For me women’s economic development and cultural organizations are the two areas I willing devote my time.
- Don’t immediately say yes. Ask to attend a meeting or two. Sometimes it’s hard not to have our heartstrings pulled and we say yes without sufficient knowledge.
- Understand why you. Meet with the board chair and executive director, independently, and have them explain. Ask them how they determine who to invite and what skills sets to recruit. It is critical this be a meeting and not a call. If you have to chase either one down to meet, I would really rethink whether you want to be involved.
- Ask to see several years of financial statements and tax returns. If you aren’t sure how to read the information, contact someone who does. Continue Reading “What to Consider Before Serving on a Board?” »
In a previous post I discussed how seeking out a mentor can help a business owner gain more depth of experience without incurring a lot of cost. In this post I discuss another option: using an advisory board also known as a non-legal board of directors.
The benefits of using an advisory board are numerous and include:
- Providing additional business experience, skills and functional expertise that maybe missing within your company.
- Strategic thinking about how to position the business.
- Providing access to new contacts and resources.
- Increasing credibility to the outside. This is particularly useful to a start-up.
- Creating greater accountability of senior management.
- Providing an outside perspective about what is working and not working inside the company.
Starting an advisory board will work best where the business owner is completely open with sharing company information. Any limiting of access to financial and other key information handicaps the advisors and dilutes the benefit to you the business owner. There are times when you might bring a group of advisors together to discuss a specific area. In this case financial information may not need to be disclosed.
Here are the questions I suggest you answer before starting: Continue Reading “Using an Advisory Board to Grow Your Business” »
If you run a lean organization there are times you need advice…one option to consider is finding a mentor.
Finding Mentors
Kelly Spor in a Wall Street Journal article Web Sites Offer Access to Mentors discusses finding a mentor using on-line mentoring using sites like MicroMentor and iMantri.com. She goes on to discuss the pros and cons of a relationship that is completely on-line. The biggest pro I can see is the ability to mentor and be mentored on your own schedule and not have to coordinate unless the discussion is to be live. The downside is by not meeting the person you don’t have the benefit of reading body language. Body language when you are a languishing start-up can be important.
Depending on where you live, one of the following organizations could help you meet experienced people who could serve as a mentor off or on-line:
- SCORE
- Women’s Business Development Center (the Center for Women & Enterprise in Boston)
- Small Business Development Center, usually at a local college or university
- Colleges or Universities offering entrepreneurship programs
- Chambers of Commerce
- Relevant trade associations
Building the Relationship Continue Reading “Building Bench Strength through a Mentor” »
