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Why I Became A Serial Board Member
by Linda A. Klein, managing partner, Gambrell & Stolz, L.L.P.
March 1, 2005
I
never considered myself to be particularly artsy or creative. I could barely color in the
lines when I was a kid. However, shortly after I joined the adult working world, they started
calling me an "idea person." You've heard the expression, "Throw 1,000 ideas on the wall and one
will stick." I was the one tossing the ideas at the wall.
Several years ago, I had the privilege of being elected to lead a prestigious, large
statewide non-profit organization. The term was one year. I had been a volunteer with this group
for years and now I was being asked to take the lead. Careful planning was necessary: What did I
want to accomplish? How would the goals be accomplished? Who (staff and volunteers) could be asked
to help? The year was over in a flash and it was time to write the farewell speech. Then it hit me:
Changing leadership on an annual basis was good for the organization.
Fresh volunteer leadership keeps an organization - whether nonprofit or professional -
responsive to change. The new President or Chair (however the association names the job) has her
special ideas on how to make the organization better. Implementing these ideas strengthens the
group. The privilege of being the leader usually gives you the ability to implement the change over
the objection, "but we always do it this way."
I started looking at the organizations with which I became involved in a whole new way. Any
time I agreed to join an organization, I did so with an eye toward leading that organization at
some time in the future and then moving on. Beginning with that mindset forced me to choose
carefully and stay focused. I spent time learning the mission, how the organization was governed,
and how it raised money. Then I decided how I could make it better.
Most volunteers choose a charity and stick with that organization for decades. That's not a
bad choice, but passions wane over time. One day you find that the annual charity ball begins to
look like the high school prom: You can decorate the gym only so many ways, and, no matter what you
do, it still looks like the gym. Volunteer leaders often unwittingly overstay their welcome.
Each new leader brings her friends with her. For non-profits, that creates a pipeline of new
donors who often get hooked on writing at least an annual contribution check. New leaders force
diversity on the organization. We need fresh, diverse leaders to keep our non-profits solvent and
responsive to their missions and our professional organizations vibrant and relevant to their
members.
If you have a vision that improves an organization, take the lead and make it happen. After
you have had your chance, move on and invite others to improve upon what you have done. Always
leave things better than you found them. Always volunteer to help the new leaders, but do not offer
opinions without being asked. Always come back to celebrate the future leaders' accomplishments.
Linda A. Klein is managing partner in the firm of Gambrell & Stolz, L.L.P. In 2004, Klein was one of five women in the nation to be awarded the Margaret Brent Achievement Award by the American Bar Association. In 1997, she became the first woman to serve as President of the State Bar of Georgia.
