I’m creating content for a board development workshop series I’m co-presenting with a colleague. In my work with nonprofit boards, an often-asked question is, “How can we engage younger people on the Board, or as volunteers?” Since I’m not a Millennial, my research led me to a recent blog post by a Millennial named Kyle Gracey. I’ve adapted some of Kyle’s ideas and added some of my own.
Millennials are a generation that already demonstrates a strong interest in volunteering and public service. Nonprofit board work can be a great way for them to give back to the community. Board service can give young people direct experience in financial and personnel management and organizational strategy. And, it might serve as a valuable networking tool for both the younger and senior members of the Board. Millennials are tech-savvy, and tend to be extremely passionate about issues nonprofits work on. Some of these promising young people will be the next nonprofit leaders and recipients of nonprofit services.
Here are six ideas for deepening your organization’s engagement with Millennials:
Maximize Your Millennial-finding Channels – Ask your program staff, some of who are probably Millennials, to recommend people in their networks. Ask your own children. Consider joining LinkedIn Board Member Connect to find professionals who are interested in serving on a nonprofit board.
Make Your Meetings ‘Millennial Ready’ – If you’re still communicating by conference calls and paper documents, you’ll need a tech upgrade to attract and retain talented Millennials. Start using videoconferencing for your board and committee meetings. Consider giving all of your directors email addresses – an email with your organization’s name after the @ is a status symbol for Millennials trying to define their professional selves. And, if they’re doing work on behalf of the organization, your brand will be strengthened. You might event consider printing business cards for board members. Again, an inexpensive investment in your brand.
Don’t Treat Millennials as Tokens – They’re on your board to serve, not fill a quota. (This is a good tip, no matter whom you’re recruiting.) Like recruiting any director, you need to ask yourself what skills your Millennial candidates are bringing to the Board and which individual will serve you best. Remember, everyone is unique.
Bring Millennials On The Board In Pairs – If your board doesn’t have any Millennials now, and especially if your average trustee is aged 50 or above, have more than one young person on your board at once. They’ll feel more comfortable, and you’ll get a better sense of the range of skills they can offer for when the next recruitment cycle starts.
Don’t Underestimate Millennials’ Skills – Many young people have started their own nonprofits, worked in startups, or otherwise been exposed to skills a nonprofit trustee needs, at a much younger age than in past generations. Don’t be afraid to make them committee chairs, officers, or let them lead projects. Engaging Millennials (or any prospective board member for that matter) in a volunteer role before putting them on your Board allows you to observe their work and commitment in action.
Ask Millennials About the Ways They’d Like To Serve – Just because a young person is an IT professional by day, doesn’t mean they want to handle your organization’s IT needs as a volunteer. Most likely, they have a wealth of other skills and talents your organization can tap into.
You can adapt these ‘best practices’ for recruiting any new person to your Board, or as a volunteer. When it comes down to it, we all want to be engaged in personally meaningful ways for important causes. When we aren’t, we often don’t participate for long.
Are you currently using any of these strategies? Let me know what you try and how it works.
