Board recruitment matrix

A recruitment matrix shows, on one page, what your board brings today, what it will lose when terms end, and what to look for next. Our guide to recruiting board members explains the thinking and where to find people; this is the working grid to fill in. Update it once a year, before your nominations, and whenever someone joins or leaves.

How to fill it in

• Start with your plan, not your members. Look at the next two or three years: a first audit, a capital campaign, a new program, a move into a new neighborhood. List the skills and connections those will need.
• Mark what people actually bring, not their job titles. A banker isn't automatically your best treasurer.
• Add term end dates. A skill you have today may leave at the next annual meeting. Our guide to board terms and rotation explains staggering.
• Track independence. IRS Form 990, Part VI, line 1b asks how many voting board members are independent. The instructions count a member as independent only if, all year, they weren't paid as an officer or employee of the charity or a related organization, didn't get more than $10,000 as an independent contractor from them (apart from reasonable pay for board service), and neither they nor a family member had a transaction with the charity or a related organization that is reportable on Schedule L. The answer is public.

Perspectives and demographics

A board that reflects the community you serve makes better decisions. If you include demographic rows, such as age range, language or lived experience of your cause, keep them voluntary: let each member decide what to share, show only totals, and keep the detailed grid with the chair or governance committee, not in the board packet. Never use the grid to rule someone out because of a protected characteristic; use it to widen where you look.