What if the biggest barrier to your mission isn't funding, or talent, or market conditions — but the people sitting in your boardroom?
Not because they're bad people. But because they don't have clear expectations about their role. They weren't trained on the very real skills required for governance. And they're shoved into systems that don't allow them to bring their best strengths to the table.
In this episode, I sit down with Rob Acton, founder of Cause Strategy Partners, to explore what separates boards that multiply impact from boards that drain resources. After serving as a nonprofit CEO for 11 years and watching boards either accelerate or anchor organizations, Rob has spent the last decade placing over 3,000 board members across 1,500 organizations — and he's figured out exactly what makes the difference.
It's not about finding wealthy donors or well-connected people. It's about design. Because most nonprofit boards aren't built — they just happen. A friend of a friend. Someone who can write a check. A warm body to fill a seat. That's governance by accident. And governance by accident creates dysfunction by design.
In our conversation, we explore:
- The invisible hand problem: when boards feel like barriers instead of assets [01:59]
- The three foundations of effective boards: expectations, design, and culture [04:43]
- Why you shouldn't apologize for setting high expectations [06:33]
- Building strategic diversity beyond demographics [07:42]
- Getting outside your existing network to find the right candidates [09:46]
- Where to draw the line between board and staff work [10:15]
- The collaboration model: why boards can't set strategy alone (but CEOs can't either) [12:27]
- What fiduciary oversight actually means in practice [13:54]
- The B minus problem: why boards get mediocre grades from their CEOs [14:48]
- Why less than 5% of board members ever receive governance training [17:28]
- Where the buck stops: who's responsible for board training [18:32]
- What crisis reveals about board quality [42:38]
- Why high-capacity people lean in when things get hard [43:36]
Notable Quotes
"I can't think of anything worse than a nonprofit organization — we don't operate around the edges of society, we're taking care of homelessness, kids, the sick, the environment — to have a board that's actually draining resources instead of contributing." — Rob Acton [04:03]
"I've seen people apologize for the roles and responsibilities and expectations. That makes me sad. There's no apology. You're stepping into a role where you'll be one of 10, 12, 15 people shepherding this important work." — Rob Acton [04:43]
"Don't just ask 'who do we know?' Really be thoughtful around what is the right mix of backgrounds, experiences, skill sets, industries that we need represented in these strategic conversations." — Rob Acton [05:11]
"When a board has delegated everything else to the CEO and said 'okay, we'll just raise money,' they've really lost track of their core responsibilities." — Rob Acton [09:18]
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