Business Volunteers Maryland

doing good. better.

boardCONNECT Nonprofit Guide (in-person event)

WELCOME TO boardCONNECT!

Tuesday, March 18, 2025, 9:00am-12:00pm

Location: CareFirst (1501 S Clinton St, Baltimore, MD 21224). Parking is available in the outdoor lot across from the building and WILL BE VALIDATED.

NONPROFIT GUIDE

This is your one-stop resource to guide you through Business Volunteers’ boardCONNECT experience. You will learn how to prepare for the event, navigate the event itself, and ultimately find a match. Please read everything carefully and scroll down.

REQUIRED STEPS BEFORE THE EVENT

  1. Review event information
  2. Prepare for the event

REQUIRED STEPS DURING THE EVENT

  1. Event schedule
  2. Learn about candidates
  3. Complete the Mutual Match Form

Questions? Email boardleadership@businessvolunteersmd.org!

REVIEW EVENT INFORMATION

boardCONNECT brings together community-minded professionals seeking to join nonprofit boards with a diverse range of nonprofit organizations seeking board members. In this “round robin” coordinated event, professionals and nonprofits engage in brief conversations, rotating throughout the event. The goal is to find matches in which a nonprofit and a professional express mutual interest and want to continue the conversation. Each boardCONNECT event results in dozens of successful matches and new board members.

Important Notes

  • A “mutual match” from this event occurs when both you and a board candidate you meet with say “YES” to continuing your conversation after the event.
  • The only commitment required from you (the nonprofit) and any candidate you are “mutually matched” with, is that you have an additional meeting to continue exploring the opportunity. Further conversations will determine which candidate(s) you ultimately extend a board seat to.
  • We understand each nonprofit has their own interview process and procedures to board election. You are allowed to follow whatever your typical election process is.
  • Please be advised that you should only ELECT one board member per company. You are allowed to interview and mutually match with several employees from the same company, but ultimately, you should only elect one to sit on your board. If you leave the event with five mutual matches from CareFirst employees, for example, you must make it clear to both your board and the candidates that only one of them will be selected.
  • There are no guarantees you will be successfully matched with a candidate.

PREPARE FOR THE EVENT

When: Tuesday, March 18, 9:00am-12:00pm Eastern Time
Where: CareFirst (1501 S Clinton St, Baltimore MD)

Parking and Check-in Information

CareFirst has a secured building, so please budget extra time to park and enter the building, regardless of when you plan to arrive for scheduling.
 
  • All nonprofit representatives must arrive promptly at 9:00am to check in and set up.
  • Park in the surface lot across the street from the building on S. Clinton St. All other entrances into the building will be locked.
  • Take a ticket to enter the lot and bring the ticket with you to the front desk. Parking is free and will be validated at the security desk upon your departure.
  • Once in the building, you will see Suite 100, the CareFirst Community Engagement Center, to your right. Please enter the suite to check in and be escorted to the proper room.
  • Have a government-issued form of ID out and ready for check-in!

Event Run of Show

If you cannot view the embedded information, please click here for a direct link.

Setting Up Your Table

From 9:00am to 9:30am, you are expected to set up your assigned interview table as you see fit. Items you may consider bringing include:
 
  • Tablecloth
  • Signs
  • Flags or large A-frames
  • Business cards, brochures, and other promotional materials

A tablecloth and basic sign will be provided for all organizations, should you not want to bring your own. Regardless of what you bring, you MUST complete set-up of your table by 9:30am!

How to Prepare for the Event

Business Volunteers recommends taking the following steps to prepare:
 
  1. Plan to arrive ON TIME OR EARLY.
  2. Be professionally dressed.
  3. Bring a government-issued form of ID for check-in.
  4. Each nonprofit must bring at least ONE fully charged laptop. You will need one in order to complete the event!
  5. Have a pen and paper ready to take notes. You will want to keep track of which board candidates resonate with you the most.
  6. Suggested- Bring any “gear” that might help candidates get a better understanding of your organization’s identity and brand—see above for suggestions.
  7. HAVE FUN! Enjoy meeting incredible board candidates in this engaging event. Thank you for participating!

Email boardleadership@businessvolunteersmd.org if you have questions.

EVENT SCHEDULE

Starting at 9:00am on March 18, candidates will create their schedules based on their interest in meeting with you. Candidates have been given access to all the promotional materials you provided and your board profile submitted to Business Volunteers. The table below shows the current, live-updating schedule.

Candidates have been encouraged to reschedule as they see fit, SO THIS SCHEDULE WILL REGULARLY CHANGE. Please use your laptop during the event to check here for your most up-to-date schedule.

Make sure to scroll to the right to see the full event schedule, OR click the expand icon on the bottom right to get a bigger view. NOTE THERE ARE EIGHT (8) INTERVIEW ROUNDS!

If you cannot view the embedded information, please click here for a direct link.

LEARN ABOUT CANDIDATES

Click on each card to see each candidate’s title, employer, and LinkedIn profile OR resume. Feel free to download and print resumes to have in front of you during your conversations. Make sure to scroll to see all candidates -or- click the expand icon on the bottom right to a bigger view.
 
We apologize for the inconvenience, but you CANNOT request interviews from specific individuals on this list. This resource is mostly made available to you so you can understand whom you’re speaking with after your schedule has been confirmed.

If you cannot view the embedded information, please click here for a direct link.

COMPLETE THE MUTUAL MATCH FORM

DO NOT COMPLETE THIS FORM UNTIL YOU HAVE COMPLETED ALL YOUR CONVERSATIONS.
 
  1. Review the conversation schedule in your guide.
  2. Answer the following question for each round: Are you interested in continuing a conversation with the candidate?
  3. It is CRITICAL that your decision is aligned to the correct ROUND. Please look at your schedule above and double check your choices and rounds before submitting.
  4. Make sure to hit SUBMIT at the bottom!

Business Volunteers will review the responses of nonprofits and candidates and share your mutual matches in 1-2 weeks.

If you cannot see the embedded form, please click here for a direct link.

DID YOU SCROLL ALL THE WAY DOWN AND HIT SUBMIT?
 
Email boardleadership@businessvolunteersmd.org if you have questions.