Becoming a trustee - top tips
I became a trustee of my local community centre, Elizabeth House, a few months ago. It’s my first trustee role in a long time, because I never felt I had the time and brain space while leading Company Three. It’s been brilliant seeing an organisation from the other side, getting to know the staff and community members and working with the director, Nathalie.
I was lucky enough to work with some brilliant trustees while I was at Company Three, and I’ve tried to take the most useful things that trustees did for me there into my new role.
Here are some of them, in the order that they came to mind.
Understand your responsibility
It’s easy to slip into the mode of being a volunteer when you agree to be a trustee - because, officially, you are one. But you are also responsible for the organisation’s running as a whole, so I think it’s important to move away from the norms of volunteering - dropping in and out, waiting to be told what to do, being a supporter. Legally, you’re responsible. If something big goes wrong, people will look to the board. Understand the level of responsibility you’re taking on - if you do, it will change how you approach everything else you do as a trustee.
Think about risk
A trustee once said to me - “I think it’s my job to worry about you and the charity a little bit, quite often”. I think that’s a good approach. Thinking about risk isn’t the most exciting part of the job, but as a CEO it’s incredibly reassuring when someone is doing it with you. Read the risk register. Ask questions about it. Challenge it.
Know who you’re working for
You’re not working for the CEO - they’re working for you. You’re kind of working for and with the board - but who is the board working for? The most useful answer to this is the beneficiaries, or potential future beneficiaries, of the charity. If you think of them as your boss - the people that you need to deliver for, it helps bring purpose and clarity to every decision (and remove ego and politics from them too).
Know your stuff
If you're responsible for the experience of the beneficiaries of the charity, you'll only do a good job if you know your stuff. Get to know and understand the people the charity works with. Read and understand the constitution and other key documents. If that’s boring, gather a set of trustees to do it together over some nice food. Ask for information. See the work of the charity first hand. Be curious. Don't wait to be spoon fed (don’t behave like a volunteer, remember) - be curious, ask questions, get the information you need to make good decisions for the people who need it most.
Check in
The best thing any trustee did for me was check in. A text on a Friday saying "Just saying hello and seeing how your week was", a catch up over a coffee every now and again, for no specific reason. A card saying well done for an event. Being a CEO (even a joint one) one can feel very lonely sometimes, and it's so welcoming to know that someone's thinking about you.
Get to know the team
The best trustees I worked with made an effort to get to know the rest of the team. They'd pop in early for a board meeting and hang out in the office. They'd take colleagues for a cuppa. Creating links between board members and staff is good governance generally - it helps trustees understand the function of the charity, and it gives colleagues opportunities to feed in without it all being mediated by the CEO(s).
Make it representative
Be proactive in making your board representative of the people you work with. This does not just mean bringing beneficiaries onto the board. It means talking about what representation looks like, getting good data, changing the board culture (and resisting what the whole board system wants a board to be and behave like). It means proper support for new board members. It means consultation and co-creation outside of the board meetings. It means much more than I can write in this paragraph - proper deep thinking and purposeful action.
Read your board papers
It's the most obvious thing in the world when someone hasn't read the papers that you've spent days preparing, and it’s really dispiriting when they haven’t. If there's too much info, or it's not presented right, or if you struggle with digesting information presented like this, or you need more time, then ask to change it - you're responsible, after all. Make it work for you.
Reply to emails
The more time the CEO spends chasing board responses to questions or requests, the less time they have to run the charity. Reply quickly, even if it’s to say that you’re busy right now and will get back to the request by a specific date. And if there are too many requests, or it’s not working for you, then change things - you’re responsible.
Do the fun stuff
Some trustees come for the board meetings, but never the party, celebration, or picnic. It always seemed strange for people not to see the benefits of their wonderful work on policies and finance. Trustees attending events feels a bit like parents coming to see your school play - it matters that you’re there, and you’ll get loads out of it.
Practise the shit stuff
You hold a lot of risk as a trustee. Spend time practising as a board for what you’ll do if things go wrong. It’s far better to find the holes while you’re role-playing, than if you’re actually dealing with something terrible. It’s a hard thing to do, but think about the worst cases - what happens if there’s a serious accident? What happens if someone makes a dangerous allegation about a senior member of staff? What happens if your building floods. Spend a session with some serious scenarios and work through your actions, just in case.
Be honest about time
If you read the good governance guide, you’ll soon realise that the only way to be an excellent trustee is to turn it into a full-time job. A massive problem with the board system is that it’s basically impossible to do the job properly as a volunteer. It’s so frustrating for everyone. But it’s the system we have for now, and the best way to navigate it is with honesty and clarity. Make it part of your regular conversations with board and team members. Be clear when you can’t give time. Don’t overcommit.
Get to know your fellow trustees
A chat or a coffee with a fellow trustee goes a long way. Be proactive about making it happen and building your board relatedness. The more you can act independently of the CEO, the more you’ll fulfil your purpose and bring value.
Work to a strategy
Trustees can be crucial in driving the development of a collective organisational strategy and once you have one, it makes everything easier because there’s a clear road map and responsibilities for everyone. Take on overall responsibility for a specific objective in the strategy that you think you can help the team deliver within your term. There’s nothing better than leaving your role as a trustee having helped the organisation change a really tangible thing.
Step down happily
It’s fine to step down. You’re not abandoning anything or anyone. Serve your time, leave a legacy, leave well. There’s nothing to feel guilty about.
What have I missed?
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