Association board members are responsible for the organization’s direction, its finances and its leadership, not its day-to-day tasks. Legally, they owe the organization three duties: care, loyalty and obedience. In practice, every board member should attend meetings prepared, support the budget and fundraising, help with events and membership, and hand their role off cleanly when their term ends.
I keep a chapter’s volunteer board on track day to day, so I see what makes a board work, and what makes a handoff painful.
The three legal duties
- Duty of care: pay attention, come prepared and make informed decisions.
- Duty of loyalty: put the organization’s interests first and disclose any conflicts of interest.
- Duty of obedience: follow the organization’s mission, bylaws and the law.
These are general principles. Your bylaws and state law set the specifics, and an attorney can tell you what applies to you.
What every board member should do
- Attend board meetings, and read the materials beforehand.
- Understand the budget and financial reports.
- Promote the organization and its events in their own networks.
- Help recruit members, sponsors and volunteers.
- Take on at least one project or committee each year.
- Keep member information confidential.
Officer roles
| Officer | Main responsibilities |
|---|---|
| President or chair | Runs meetings, sets priorities, speaks for the organization |
| Vice president or chair-elect | Supports the president, often next in line, leads special projects |
| Secretary | Meeting notices, minutes, records and bylaws |
| Treasurer | Budget, financial reports, bank accounts and taxes |
| Past president | Continuity, advice and often nominations |
Many chapters add directors for programs, membership, sponsorship and communications.
Board vs. staff or management
If you have staff or a management company, the board decides what and why, and staff decide how. Boards that drift into day-to-day tasks burn out their volunteers and their staff.
Handing off between terms
Board turnover is where associations lose the most knowledge. Before each term ends:
- Write a one-page guide for each role: what it does, key dates, who to call.
- Move logins to association-owned accounts, never personal email.
- Overlap: have the incoming officer shadow the outgoing one for a meeting or two.
- Keep a record of past board members, for history and future nominations.
For finding the next board, see our guide to volunteer recruitment, and for running meetings, our board meeting agenda and minutes template.
Frequently asked questions
What are the responsibilities of an association board member?
Setting direction, overseeing finances, supporting events and membership, and acting with the legal duties of care, loyalty and obedience.
What are the three duties of a board member?
Care (making informed decisions), loyalty (putting the organization first and disclosing conflicts) and obedience (following the mission, bylaws and law).
How much time does being on a board take?
It depends on the organization. For most chapters, expect monthly meetings plus a few hours a month on a project or committee, more around big events.
What does the board secretary do?
Sends meeting notices, takes minutes, keeps records and maintains the bylaws.
Keep the board page current
Purple Pushpin gives associations a board page with terms and a record of past board members, plus shared documents, so each new board starts with what the last one knew.