Board members are elected by their peers to represent the shareholder’s interests and take major decisions for the company. The process of election varies from organization to organization. Some organizations allow nominations to the committee while others employ Robert’s Rules of Order for the election of board members. In either case it’s important that the rules and procedures are clearly defined.
The process of identifying candidates is ongoing to ensure the board has the skills and expertise to achieve the organization’s goals and mission. The nominating panel will interview each candidate to determine if the nominee is a good fit with the abilities as well as experience and perspectives for a position on the board. In addition the nominating committee should be aware of whether the company is in need of new expertise in areas such as financial management; marketing and fundraising strategic planning; diversity and inclusion.
The board will approve the list of nominees once the nominating committee has approved it. The board will then review the candidates and approve a slate of nominees to be presented to a vote of the all members. The board is also able to review candidates who didn’t make the cut, and pick individuals for the board as directors at large. The full board will be able to vote on these directors at a later time. In many cases, nominees won’t be present for the vote. This allows the board to discuss their qualifications in an informal setting.