134 Human Resources Management for Public and Nonprofi t Organizations
3. Purposive incentives are intangible and relate to the satisfaction or
gratifi cation of working toward the stated goals of the organization.
4. Developmental incentives are intangible rewards such as the ability to
assume civic responsibility or using one ’ s capabilities.- S ervice incentives include fulfi lling or reducing a sense of civic responsibility;
they are focused on relieving or fulfi lling one ’ s sense of obligation. Dif-
ferent board members are motivated by different incentives.
Personal enrichment, substantive interest, social and business contacts, and
feelings of accomplishment are just some of the reasons that individuals
become board members.
Drawing on previous research on board members ’ motivation to
serve, Inglis and Cleave (2006) developed a scale to assess board members ’
motivations. They identifi ed six components:- Enhancing self - worth refl ects attitudes and behaviors that benefi t the
individuals serving as board members. - Learning through community benefi ts the individual ’ s growth through
learning new skills, learning about the community, developing strengths,
and making contacts. - Helping the community refl ects motivations to make a difference.
- Developing individual relationships refl ects the importance of social
relationships with fellow board members. - Making unique contributions to the board addresses what individuals perceive
to be the skills or knowledge they bring to the board. - Self - healing considers why individuals might be interested in volunteering
as a way to deal positively with deeply felt needs.
Board members are volunteers, and like most other volunteers, they join
boards for a variety of reasons.
Herman (2005) notes several similarities between board and service
volunteers; they are similar in demographics, show the same mix of
motives and incentives for volunteering, and often are helped by support-
ive management practices. There are some differences as well. For elite
nonprofi ts, the community status of their board members may be impor-
tant in regard to who is nominated and selected as a board member, and
since board members are the ultimate authority in their organizations,
the employee model of volunteer management is less applicable to them.
Unlike service volunteers, board members are less likely to have written
job descriptions and policies in regard to their responsibilities, and they
are not supervised but encouraged to perform their duties.