The Handbook of Board Governance, 3rd Edition

70Model Fundraising Practices forNot-for-profit Boards of Directors

Stephanie Cory, CAP^®, CFRE, CFRE, BS, MS, MEd

Principal, Stephanie Cory Consulting

Introduction

One of the key responsibilities for a not-for-profit board of directors is to ensure necessary resources for their organizations. This entails two main types: financial resources and human resources. How the board helps ensure necessary financial resources can vary significantly across the charitable sector. Some organizations rely heavily on fees charged for services or membership dues. Others must raise 100 percent of the money needed to carry out their missions.

In order to ensure necessary resources, boards of directors are charged with identifying what resources are needed and establishing policies for how these resources will be acquired. The board should also determine how each board member is expected to participate in fundraising. This includes contributing financially, helping to develop a resource development plan, and supporting the organization’s fundraising efforts.

Since 1994, BoardSource has surveyed nonprofit chief executives and board chairs in the United States. Results from the 2021 Leading with Intent: BoardSource Index of Nonprofit Board Practices indicate engaging boards in fundraising remains a challenge for many organizations. While fundraising ranked relatively high in order of the importance chief executives and board chairs placed on it, board performance in fundraising rated the lowest ...