Nonprofit boards play an underappreciated but critical role in strengthening civil society. As volunteers, they contribute time, expertise, and judgment to organizations that are often resource-constrained and tackling some of society’s most complex and urgent challenges.

It’s a demanding ask, especially today. Nonprofits are navigating increasingly dynamic funding landscapes, rising performance expectations, and ambitious goals for social change. Many boards meet these challenges by focusing and consistently delivering on essential duties of governance: overseeing compliance, reviewing strategy, supporting executives, and providing financial support. Doing so well is a meaningful achievement in and of itself.

Through The Bridgespan Group’s work advising hundreds of nonprofit teams and leaders, as well as insights from conversations with nonprofit board members, we’ve observed that some boards go even further. These extraordinary boards not only fulfill their core responsibilities but also serve as trusted partners, strategic accelerators, and influential connectors, helping their organizations build resilience and momentum in an ever-evolving context.

In response to a question we often hear—what distinguishes a functional board from an extraordinary one?—we’ve distilled three practices that can make a meaningful difference. These build on our advisory work, insights from nonprofit leaders, and the valuable knowledge of BoardSource, whose frameworks have shaped the way the sector understands nonprofit board excellence.

What Extraordinary Boards Do Differently

Boards that truly accelerate impact tend to do three things particularly well: forge constructive, trust-based partnerships with leadership; engage deeply in long-term strategic thinking; and actively leverage their influence to expand access, credibility, and resources.

1. Constructive Partnership with Leadership

Extraordinary boards cultivate relationships with nonprofit leadership that are grounded in mutual trust, clear expectations, and shared purpose. They go beyond the traditional oversight model to become thought partners—supportive yet appropriately challenging, especially during moments of tension or transition. As one nonprofit leader puts it, “I think of my board as my brain trust. They talk with me, stress test my assumptions, and push my thinking in an appropriate way.”

This is the principle of “constructive partnership” outlined in BoardSource’s “The Source: Twelve Principles of Governance That Power Exceptional Boards.” In this approach, the board and the nonprofit executive team work together, sharing leadership in the spirit of mutual respect and shared accountability.

This sort of partnership isn’t transactional; it’s relational. High-functioning boards offer counsel without overreach, and know when to lean in and when to give space. They’re also willing to initiate hard conversations, when necessary, about strategic direction, executive performance, or succession planning. This is not to undermine leadership but to reinforce stability, accountability, and long-term impact.

Constructive partnership is critical during leadership transitions, especially when the incoming leader is from a historically marginalized community, such as a leader of color in the United States. As Monika Kalra Varma, CEO of BoardSource, shared in an interview, one of a board’s most important responsibilities is supporting those leaders and ensuring that leadership changes become opportunities to advance, not undermine, equity goals. Doing so requires more than good intentions; it calls for structural reflection, shared learning, and a board culture grounded in trust and accountability.

2. Generative Strategic Thinking

Extraordinary boards don’t just support an organization’s ongoing efforts; they help sharpen its long-term strategic thinking. Drawing on their own expertise and perspectives, these boards actively engage in the big questions: Are we doing the right work to achieve our mission? Is our strategy designed with a focus on equitable reach and impact? Are we attuned to shifts in our environment? Are we bold enough in our aspirations?

This kind of engagement aligns with what governance scholars Richard Chait, William Ryan, and Barbara Taylor describe as “generative governance” in their book Governance as Leadership. In this mode, boards don’t just review and approve strategy. Rather, they help frame problems, surface assumptions, and co-create direction. It’s a deeper, more exploratory form of strategic challenge and curiosity, helping organizations focus on the right questions while remaining grounded in purpose, prepared for change, and ambitious for impact.

“We’ve shaped our board to be provocative thought partners for us in the places where we most want to grow—geographically, strategically, and programmatically,” shares one nonprofit leader. Generative strategic thinking is enabled by board culture, which includes how decisions are made, attitudes toward change, power dynamics, and equity. When done well, it’s about creating space for thoughtful challenge and curiosity, helping organizations focus on the right questions while remaining grounded in purpose, prepared for change, and ambitious for impact. 

In doing so, boards also help surface how the strategy touches members of the target community—including historically marginalized groups—differentially, by asking whose perspectives are shaping the strategy, who may be excluded by current assumptions, and how impact goals can be more inclusive and community informed. Boards that bring lived experience that reflects the communities served, and who stay humble, are better equipped to ask, and act on, those questions.

3. Activating Influence and Access

Extraordinary boards recognize that their value extends well beyond their boardroom votes. They actively and creatively deploy their networks, reputations, and skills to create and engage in promising opportunities, secure funding, and strengthen credibility in the field. “Our board opens doors for us,” shares one nonprofit leader. Another notes, “You want people to go, ‘Wow, these people are on your board?’” 

Rather than defaulting to broad fundraising appeals, they often take a personalized relationship-driven approach, connecting the organization with the right people, resources, and opportunities. In doing so, they serve as an ambassador, an advocate, and a force multiplier for the organization and its mission.

When done thoughtfully, this also includes using their influence to elevate underrepresented voices, advocate for equity-aligned partnerships, and expand access in ways that reflect the organization’s values.

Tailoring Governance to Organizational Needs

There’s no one-size-fits-all model for extraordinary board governance. What an organization needs from its board will vary depending on its stage of growth, strategic priorities, operating model, and whether it’s in a period of stability or transition.

Just as context shapes strategy, it should also shape how boards engage. A board guiding a new direct services nonprofit through rapid growth will operate differently from one supporting a mature, field-building organization. The most effective boards calibrate their involvement to meet the moment: stepping forward in times of change or crisis and stepping back when appropriate while staying attuned to the evolving needs of the organization.

"Revisit your board composition matrix annually, thinking about needs three to five years beyond your current strategy and operations,” one leader advises. That same proactive spirit applies not just to who is around the table but how each board member shows up as a steward of mission, equity, and impact.

For additional resources and tools to support your board’s development, visit Bridgespan’s Nonprofit Board Resource Center and explore the following guides:

• Three Tips for Unlocking Board Effectiveness After a Windfall Grant
• Making Founder Successions Work
• BoardSource: The Source: 12 Principles of Governance That Power Exceptional Boards
• BoardSource: Purpose-Driven Board Leadership
• BoardSource: Recruiting Your Board
• BoardSource: Board Meeting "Problem Solver"
• BoardSource: Structure, Committees, and Meetings
• BoardSource: Recommended Board Practices
• Stand For Your Mission: The Board’s Role in Advocacy