Originally published on wonderfulengineering.com
As a person and a professional, one of the most beneficial and rewarding service opportunities to participate in that is bigger than yourself is becoming a member of a nonprofit board of directors. Fill your time with the chance to get proactively involved in your community while donating your efforts to a cause that reflects your passions. You will also develop recompensing leadership skills along the way.
Jason Kulpa, a serial entrepreneur and the founder of The Kulpa Foundation, has a passion for bringing awareness, support, and inclusion for special needs causes. With The Kulpa Foundation, Kulpa can create inspiration and a helping hand for parents or siblings of special needs children or adults through scholarships. Kulpa endorses any opportunity an individual has to join a nonprofit board of directors, and further explores why you should, what it requires of you, and how to get involved.
The Why
Why should you seek to serve on a charity’s board of directors? Giving back to your community is always an emotionally fulfilling experience, but joining a nonprofit’s board is even more profound.
Allow yourself to participate in building a business. A nonprofit has many business facets such as management, financial planning, marketing strategies, human resources, technology implementations, and government requirements. Getting involved with any area of a nonprofit will help grant you an alternative professional perspective and the change to develop new capabilities.
Choosing to join a board of directors is an intelligent approach to grow your network as a professional. Expand your clientele or connect with other businesses that share the same values as you.
The What
What expectations come with being a board member? An effective board of directors consists of members that have taken the time to understand the ins and outs of their roles and responsibilities. There are vital legal responsibilities that each individual has to uphold, including Duty of Care, Duty of Loyalty, and Duty of Obedience.
Following these three duties ensures that the nonprofit and its mission is honorable, true, and legal. Duty of Care requires for each board member to actively practice his or her best judgment while participating in all required decision making for the organization. Duty of Loyalty holds members to always put the nonprofit’s needs as the priority behind all its decision conclusions. To make sure the board members are continuing to cohere to the nonprofit’s mission and government compliances, the Duty of Obedience must be endorsed.
The How
How do you find a board of directors to serve? Consider starting with analyzing your interests and identify a nonprofit organization that makes volunteering sound exciting. Research which local nonprofits and national charity chapters are in your area, and find one that supports a value, mission, or message that aligns parallel to yours.
Once you have decided on an appealing nonprofit to give your time to, reach out and express your interest. They might need you on their board, but if anything, you can get your foot in the door through a lower-level volunteer opportunity and work your way up. Make sure you accurately exchange your contact information in case there is an unexpected opportunity for you to become a board member.
About Jason Kulpa
Jason Kulpa is a San Diego’s two-time winner of the Most Admired CEO Award of the San Diego Business Journal and also a semi-finalist for the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur award. Under Mr. Kulpa’s leadership, in 2018, his teams volunteered at over 24 events and worked side-by-side to improve the San Diego community.