BoardSource (formerly the National Center for Nonprofit Boards) published Creating and Renewing Advisory Boards: Strategies for Success by Nancy R. Axelrod in 1991. It describes the purposes of advisory committees, discusses the elements for successful committees, and provides eight case studies, which identify some of the most common contributions made by and problems associated with advisory groups.
You might also want to see two BoardSource FAQs; "What is the difference between a governing board and an advisory board?" and "How common are advisory groups that assist nonprofit boards?"
You can also peruse some of the resources in the Board Cafe, an electronic newsletter exclusively for members of nonprofit boards of directors.
Other resources on this subject include:
- The Board Member's Guide: Making a Difference on Your Board and in Your Community. Columbus, OH: Academy for Leadership and Governance, 2003.
- Borsavage, Kim. "Practical Advice on Advisory Boards". Advancing Philanthropy 2 (Winter 1994) p. 37-9.
- Cargo, Russell A. "Confessions of a Committee Member." Board Member 12 (December 2003) p. 6-8. Cargo explains how chief executives can best utilize the knowledge and support of advisory boards.
- Maude, Michael. "Catapult Your Development Efforts with an Advisory Council". Fund Raising Management 28 (May 1997) p. 24-9.
- Saidel, Judith R. "Expanding the Governance Construct: Functions and Contributions of Nonprofit Advisory Groups". Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly 27 (December 1998) p. 421-436. Studies the role and impact of advisory groups on the governance and operation of nonprofit organizations, specifically, those agencies with government grants or contracts.
For other books and articles on advisory boards, try searching our Catalog of Nonprofit Literature (CNL), the Center's bibliographic database. You could start searching on the subjects "Advisory boards" or "Board members".
Many of the books and articles found through CNL can be located in Center Libraries and some Cooperating Collections. It is best to call ahead to verify a specific library's holdings.
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