Profile, organizational involvement and perception of leadership responsibility among selected members of boards of directors

Includes bibliographical references (pages 70-72)The study addressed whether volunteers would stay\ud within the same organization in order to rise to its\ud highest level of leadership; their motivation and commitment\ud to board activity, and their perception of the\ud characteristics of effective leadership.\ud The volume of literature covering the administrative\ud volunteer and the non-profit voluntary agency is comparatively\ud sparse. Few empirical studies have focused on the\ud complexities of board members and the agency to which\ud they commit themselves. However, many authors reflect on\ud the ubiquitous nature of voluntary action. \ud The respondents were men and women who have been or\ud are currently serving on a board of directors of a United\ud Way agency. They either live or work within the San\ud Fernando Valley, a part of metropolitan Los Angeles.\ud The data collected was categorized into five segments:\ud profile of respondents, motivation for voluntary\ud efforts, leadership involvement, skills and characteristics\ud of board responsibility, and characteristics of an\ud ideal type of board assignment.\ud The data indicates a substantial and enduring level\ud of leadership involvement by the respondents. The majority\ud of the volunteers stayed primarily within the same\ud organization for many years although some served on more\ud than one board. They represented a homogenous, well-established\ud community leadership group.\ud The majority of volunteers were motivated by feeling\ud a commitment to "help others," "doing something to benefit\ud the community" and/or "personal satisfaction."\ud Ideal voluntary board assignments centered around\ud tasks motivated by a personal commitment.\ud Effective board leadership was identified by setting\ud agency and board objectives, making management and program\ud decisions, and having a sound knowledge of the\ud organization