Board orientation is a deliberate, proactive process in which you provide board members with the policies, procedures, and information needed to govern an organization well. The goal is to give new board members everything they need to fulfill their roles and responsibilities effectively and efficiently, and to ensure that they are able to immediately participate in all board discussions and activities.

Although board member orientation needs may be fairly consistent, board member training needs are not. Each board member will come with a specific set of skills or areas of expertise, some that may be applicable to the organization and some that may not. Therefore, training needs should be determined based on what skills or areas of expertise board members can bring to the table as well as the skills and areas of expertise board members need to acquire to be successful in the future.