The Little Book of Boards: A Board Member's Handbook for Small (and Very Small) Nonprofits Paperback – February 2, 2015

I found Mr. Hanberg’s Little Book to be very helpful, and wish I had started it years ago when I first joined a board. That said there was plenty of material still to learn!I have served on three different boards, as well as two “board-like” organizations – leadership team of a Boy Scout troop and a church advisory council. My major challenge now is serving as a founding board member of a new organization whose mission is to provide employment opportunities for the marginalized, particularly people in recovery and the formerly incarcerated. This is the first time my organization has had full time employees and rented real estate, so it’s a new experience.Hanberg’s work is simply expressed and understandable to all. I would recommend it to new and experienced board members alike. Hanberg suggests that a board governance committee have the responsibility for ongoing training and development of Board members. I can think of great use of the book as a tool for chapter by chapter training and discussion, to strengthen board processes and skills. I will be proposing this to my board.His idea of an MOU – Memorandum of Understanding – for board members is terrific. Another unusual and very helpful aspect of this book as compared to works on boards in general is the distinction between service as a Board member and direct engagement in the work of the nonprofit. This has been the norm in all of the groups I’ve worked with, and I hope to learn from his guidance on how to separate these roles.Reviewer AMCIT expressed the concern that the book assumed that the nonprofit was already well structured. My current situation is far from it. A "road map" to strengthen would be a useful addition to the current work but I wouldn't discourage anyone from starting with this book and carefully working forward.

Although I have been a member at large, this is my first time as a board president. So, I needed more information to set myself (and us) up successfully. After a Google search, I landed on this book by Erik Hanberg and it has been exactly what I needed and what our incoming board needs! I'm so grateful for finding this gem!

I like this book as it gives me information that I need a someone who has now ventured into the world of board membership. Great information

This book is very informative, quick to read, and I’m so glad to have read it. I can continue my small NGO with confidence. I was especially surprised and excited to learn the author is from Tacoma because that is where I grew up.

Just completing my 1st year on the Women's Council of Realtor Board as Secretary and was just elected as President-elect - incoming new position for 2021 - after a wild and rocky 2020 year of near no-contact - I felt it was very important to learn as much as possible so I could hit the ground running and be an even more important part of my Board. Low & behold - found this book (and the other 2 that go with this one) - AMAZING Read and I shared with my colleagues who also say this is a very informative book (actually, all 3 are) so, thankful for finding this - Very Helpful!!

I brought this book along for some light reading on vacation as I prepare to join a BoD of a small local non-profit animal rescue.I've been active in animal rescue for four years with a group that was poorly managed and had no operational structure - it was the "director's"/president's pet project that would dissolve when she was done.I knew I wanted to take a more active role in my rescue work and ended up finding another rescue to work with - in my first meeting with the President of the board she suggested I think about joining her BoD. They have only existed for two years and my four year experience would give them insight their young non-profit and "young" board could use. It was the first time I felt recognized and respected for my passion, opinions, dedication, and experience in four years.To that end, I wanted to bring more to the table and bought a few books, including this one, to help me better serve this group. I will be purchasing both of Hanberg's other books as soon as I arrive home from my trip. I learned that I knew absolutely nothing about running a nonprofit, the structure of a non-profit, how Board meetings worked, etc. despite four years with a group that I thought was an active non-profit. I am so excited to join a non-profit rescue group that is looking to sustainably grow, wants to implement changes to better serve our community, and appreciates feedback from others regarding best practices and suggestions for what has worked (or not) for other groups.

Not as much detail as I was looking for. Examples weren't very helpful, and the detail was focused on certain types of boards (mainly ones with employees).

Overall, this is a good book for very small nonprofits, encompassing the concerns of the board. It is well-organized and covers the spectrum of concerns in an easy-to-read manner. Further while it does cover dealing with a paid executive director, most of the material remaining is applicable to all volunteer organizations (AVO's).While the personal experiences of the author add to the flavor of the book's material, the text could have utilized more industry references and statistics to support the claims within. There remains a question of how well the suggestions would work outside the specific experience range of the author unfortunately, without such references. Further, the author admits to his bias as a past executive director and with some of the recommendations for nonprofit boards, such as the close interaction between the executive director and board chair in guiding overall strategy of an organization (as compared to other board members and the board chair, that bias is glaring.Still, the scope of activity and structure within it should make this a worthwhile resource for volunteers considering becoming board members and for those newly appointed in those roles. Overall, I recommend it.

Easy to understand

Esta siendo muy ilustrativo y de gran ayuda para nuestra ONG

Very informative, easy read book. I learnt a lot b