90-Day Board Chair Roadmap

Search “90-day plan for a new Executive Director” and you’ll find dozens of thoughtful, detailed roadmaps. Search the same for a new Board Chair and you’ll find…practically nothing. 

A few generic checklists, an alarming amount of stock photography, and not much else. 

It reflects a sector-wide assumption that board leadership doesn’t need onboarding. If someone has served on a board long enough, osmosis will kick in, and they’ll just know how to chair one, right? 

I can tell you from experience: osmosis does not kick in. 

Chairing a board is a different job than serving on one, with different relationships to manage and different judgment calls to make. 

Executive Directors then find themselves in the unenviable position of needing to coach their own boss. What’s their role? How do they lead a board? How do they effectively partner with their ED? 

And so I wrote the roadmap that should already exist: a robust 90-day plan, starting 30 days before the incoming chair officially steps in. (Yes, before — that's not a typo, and I explain why on page one of the guide).

Everything in it comes from my own first 90 days as a chair, including a few things I'd do differently if I could go back. I didn't want to hand you a generic best-practices list. I wanted to hand you the thing I wish someone had handed me. 

Whether you're the one about to take on the chair role, or you're the one who'll be working alongside whoever does…Grab it, use it, or pass it along to someone who needs it.

One last thing before you go.

This might still feel like a lot, given everything that’s on your plate. You’re not striving for perfection, just a place to start.

If having a partner to help you step back, get organized, and move forward with intention would make the difference, we’d be delighted to talk.