Program evaluation

Board self-assessment survey template

Governance, strategy, finance oversight, meetings and board culture, rated by board members anonymously.

4 questions · about 5 minutes to complete · free on every plan

Free account required. The template is copied into your workspace; edit anything before publishing.

When to use it: Annually, before the board retreat.
Who it is for: Board members.

How to use this template

Ask participants about change in their situation, not just satisfaction with the service.
Collect the numbers your funder reports on, in their definitions.
Share what you learned and one change you made. People answer the next survey when the last one visibly mattered.

Questions in the board self-assessment template

1. The board…
matrix · Has a clear understanding of the mission and strategy, Receives financial information it understands, Meetings focus on the right issues, Members prepare for meetings, Has the skills and diversity it needs, Evaluates the executive director fairly, Members contribute to fundraising as agreed
2. Overall, how effective is the board?
rating
3. What should the board start, stop or continue?
open text
4. What skills or perspectives are missing?
open text

What the results look like

IllustrativeSynthetic sample of 120 responses generated for this preview, not real survey data. Your results page shows the same charts for your own responses.

1.The board…

120 answered

Statement	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Neutral	Agree	Strongly agree	n
Has a clear understanding of the mission and strategy	4%	13%	13%	25%	44%	120
Receives financial information it understands	6%	9%	16%	37%	33%	120
Meetings focus on the right issues	8%	10%	16%	30%	37%	120
Members prepare for meetings	8%	14%	25%	24%	29%	120
Has the skills and diversity it needs	5%	12%	27%	25%	32%	120
Evaluates the executive director fairly	6%	11%	21%	27%	36%	120
Members contribute to fundraising as agreed	9%	7%	19%	30%	35%	120

2.Overall, how effective is the board?

120 answered

Average 3.4

Answer distribution
Answer	Count	Percent
1	13	11%
2	15	13%
3	28	23%
4	34	28%
5	30	25%

How to read these questions

matrix: Compare rows on the same column (for example, % agree) to find the weakest statement, then look at who rates it lowest.
rating: Report the mean and the top-two-box share (the two highest points). Top-two-box is easier to explain and less sensitive to a few extreme answers.

Frequently asked questions

What is a program evaluation survey?

A survey of participants measuring reach (who was served), satisfaction (how it went) and outcomes (what changed for them), usually required by funders.

How long does the board self-assessment survey take to complete?

About 5 minutes: 4 questions, most of them single-tap. Every question can be edited, removed or reordered in the builder before you publish.

Is this template free to use?

Yes. Every template is included on the Free plan. Sign up, click Use this template, and it is copied into your workspace where you can edit it, add your logo and share it by link, email or embed.