7 ways serving on a board has served Mary Ann Jackson

Board service is a way employees give back to their communities - and it can pay off big time in developing their own careers.

Twenty years ago, Mary Ann Jackson, a vice president of process management in Prudential Financial's Finance and Actuarial Community, was tapped to be the chief financial officer of Girls Action Network. This New Jersey-based nonprofit is dedicated to preparing young women for a fulfilling career path. At the time, she was a financial analyst, a more junior role.

Three years later, Jackson was asked to sit on the board of an IT organization as the vice president of strategy and planning, even though she doesn't have an IT background.

Who gave her the confidence to take on these roles, which Jackson freely admits were "far more strategic" than her day jobs?

"The people who asked me," Jackson explains. The person who thought of her for Girls Action Network, for example, was a West Point graduate with a law degree from Rutgers University and a master's degree from Harvard University. The IT-focused nonprofit came to her by way of a well-respected colleague in Prudential's Global Technology group who had multiple advanced degrees. "I thought, 'If they believe I can do this, they must see something in me,'" she says.

Her most recent role as chair of the board of the United Way of Greater Newark in New Jersey came to her through a Prudential program called Building Diverse Leaders and Boards.

Prudential developed the program in 2019 to address the fact that more than 80% of nonprofit boards do not represent the communities they serve, says René Deida, vice president of Community Engagement at Prudential Financial. "Prudential's philosophy is to provide nonprofits not only with financial resources, but with human capital to help them achieve their mission. Board service is an example of that. Our employees have the transferable skills as well as the passion and commitment to address complex social issues."

To date, 45 employees have been placed to serve on nonprofit boards through Building Diverse Leaders and Boards, and a new cohort of employees will be trained later this year.

This opportunity is another way to connect employees to Prudential's purpose and do meaningful work.

"Board service takes you to a whole other level of heightened awareness in your career," says Jackson. "It gives you confidence, and if you're confident, people are confident in you."

Of course, it's not a perfect fit for everyone, and there are many other rewarding ways to give back. But consider key skills Jackson gained through her decades of serving on nonprofit boards:

1. Time management
   Jackson doesn't think in terms of "work life" and "personal life." Instead, "It's, 'Here's my life, and here's how, based on the importance of what has to get done, I schedule my day,'" she says. She doesn't try to tackle more than five critical items in a day. In fact, her ideal number of tasks is three: "I'd rather do a few things very well than do a lot of things shabbily."
   
   
2. Delegation
   When she knows she may fall short in accomplishing the items on her to-do list, Jackson notifies people early and delegates appropriately: "I align what I need done with someone who wants to build that skill, or who will get an opportunity to network."
   
   
3. Business acumen
   She has learned how to read a financial statement and gained a greater understanding of budgets. Jackson stays up to date on industry-specific and business news, noting that "what happens in the business world has a trickle-down effect to communities and vice versa. Societal concerns can affect how we do business as well, helping us innovate and work with new markets."
   
   
4. Interpersonal skills
   She's been trained in the best way to resolve conflicts when she and a board member disagree, for example. Jackson has also learned to be comfortable asking for assistance. "When I bring that back to Prudential, I appreciate cross-functional teams. I'm looking for different points of view. I know when I need a subject matter expert and I can say, 'Hey, I'm clueless about this. Please help me.' Because there's no shame in saying that on the nonprofit side."
   
   
5. Critical thinking
   Jackson prides herself on asking "deep" questions and not being afraid to push back when the answers don't make sense to her.
   
   
6. Networking
   Nonprofit boards are often made up of people in different industries, which leads to a broad, diverse pool of contacts. "So now, if I don't know the answer to something, I know where to find it," Jackson explains.
   
   
7. Presentation skills
   Thanks to Building Diverse Leaders and Boards training and her experience on various board committees, Jackson has mastered the art of presenting: commanding people's attention, conveying her passion, and delivering information clearly and credibly.

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