How to Bring On High-Quality People to Your Nonprofit
- Tom Iselin
- Mar 20, 2021
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 11, 2025
This blog and video teaches you tactics for how to create filters and set expectations to bring on high quality people (staff, board, and volunteers) at your nonprofit.
How to Bring On High-Quality People
How do you actually bring on (and keep) those high-quality staff, volunteers, and board members?
Because let’s be honest:The nonprofit world is a human endeavor. Without people—staff, board, and volunteers—you can’t run programs, raise money, or fulfill your mission. It all starts with Human Capital.
The higher the quality of your people, the higher the quality of your impact.
Why Quality People Must Become a Core Part of Your Culture
Bringing on high-quality people doesn’t happen by accident. It begins with a commitment—a cultural expectation shared by your entire organization. You want your team “resolved” to finding competent and committed people, however long it takes.
No sloths.No deadweights.You’re building a gold-standard nonprofit.
To do that, you need two things:
Strong filters
Clear expectations
These prevent the wrong people from ever entering your system in the first place.
1. Creating Filters & Expectations for High-Quality Staff
Start with Detailed Job Descriptions
This is your first filter. Spell out:
Specific job duties
Required skills
Expected behaviors
Cultural values
Performance expectations
Vague job descriptions invite vague applicants.
Use Observation-Based Interviewing
This is one of the most powerful techniques you can use.
When you’re down to your top 2–3 candidates:
Bring them in for 2–3 days
Put them to work
Observe their performance
Watch how they interact with others
Yes, pay them for their time. It’s worth every penny.
After a few days, the clear winner emerges—not from what they say… but from what they do.
Evaluate Culture Fit
Ask your team:
How would this person fit into our work culture?
What drives them?
Do they match our work ethic?
Will this person enhance our culture—or dilute it?
Technical skills matter.Cultural alignment matters more.
2. How to Bring On High-Quality Board Members
Bringing on the wrong board member is one of the fastest ways to sabotage a nonprofit’s culture, momentum, and morale. Your filters must be crystal clear upfront.
Set Specific Expectations Early
“Board members must help with fundraising” is meaningless.
Instead, define exactly what “helping” looks like:
How much money are they expected to raise?
Are they required to host a dinner?
Do they need to attend donor meetings?
How many board meetings must they attend?
What committees must they serve on?
If you don’t articulate expectations upfront, you’ll hear:
“I didn’t sign up for this!”
Later… guaranteed.
Evaluate Culture Fit (Again, It’s Everything)
Ask the board:
Will this person align with our culture?
Are they stubborn? High-maintenance? Drama-prone?
Are they genuinely passionate about the mission?
Will they work? Or will they watch?
A unified, cohesive board is a powerful force.A fragmented board is a babysitting job.
3. Bringing On High-Quality Volunteers
Volunteers can make or break your organization. They deserve the same intentionality as staff.
Create a Volunteer Handbook
This is your filter. Include:
Standards of behavior
Job functions
Policies and procedures
Expectations of service
Communication rules
Code of conduct
Google volunteer handbook templates—you’ll find gold.
Provide Thorough Orientation & Training
Training should be facilitated by an experienced staff member or veteran volunteer. This ensures:
Clear expectations
Consistent messaging
Stronger cultural alignment
Better performance
Protect Your Volunteer Culture
Ask:
Will this volunteer fit in well?
Will they build unity—or tension?
Do they bring positivity and teamwork?
Happy volunteers working in unison can do “the unimaginable” for your nonprofit.
Be Patient. High-Quality People Are Worth the Wait.
Yes, you’re short on resources. Yes, hiring and screening take time. But consider the alternative:
Drama
Turnover
Deadweights
Lost time
Lost energy
Lost corporate intelligence
Every time someone leaves, they take knowledge, relationships, and insights with them—expensive to rebuild.
Patience pays. Filters save you. Expectations protect you.
If you create strong filters and set clear expectations of work and service, you will bring on the high-quality people who are both competent and committed.
Summary: The Formula for Bringing On High-Quality People
High-quality people don't simply appear—they are filtered in through intention and structure. To build a gold standard nonprofit:
Make high-quality people a core cultural priority.
Create rigorous filters through job descriptions, interviews, and expectations.
Assess culture fit for every staff member, volunteer, and board nominee.
Use observation-based interviews to reveal true competence.
Set clear, specific expectations for board service.
Protect your staff and volunteer culture at all costs.
Be patient—finding the right people saves time, money, and headaches in the long run.
With the right people, everything else becomes easier.
Tom Iselin
Rated One of America’s Best Board Retreat
and Strategic Planning Facilitators
About the Author
Tom Iselin is recognized as one of America’s leading authorities on high-performance nonprofits. He has built nine sector-leading nonprofits and two software companies, written six books, sits on multiple boards, and has been rated one of America’s Best Board Retreat and Strategic Planning Facilitators. His work on nonprofit strategy, board leadership, and culture has been featured on CNN, Nightline, and in Newsweek.
Tom is the president of First Things First, a firm specializing in board retreats, strategic planning services, fundraising strategy, and executive coaching for nonprofit CEOs.
Board Retreats & Strategic Planning
If you’re looking for a board retreat facilitator or strategic planning facilitator who has been in the trenches and understands real-world nonprofit challenges, Tom can help your board gain clarity, build alignment, and create an actionable plan that improves performance and impact. His sessions propel organizations to the next level of performance and impact . . . and they're fun!
Board Retreats and Strategic Planning Services:
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