Marla J. Bobowick, MBA/CNM

Marla has over a decade of nonprofit experience and a history of creative problem solving. Specializing in nonprofit management and leadership, she has extensive experience with board governance, strategy, research, and publishing. She has worked with nonprofit organizations of all types and sizes, ranging from a local Habitat for Humanity and a family foundation to the Smithsonian Institution, a regional healthcare organization, and a national federated organization.

 

Previously, Marla was a Vice President of Products at BoardSource, where she oversaw publications, online products, and research. During her tenure at BoardSource, she was an active consultant and trainer, developed educational curriculum, managed regional capacity building projects, oversaw the global program, and coordinated the annual conference. She remains a Senior Governance Consultant for BoardSource.

 

While at BoardSource, Marla managed the “Nonprofit Governance Index,” a research project that gathers baseline data about board practices in the United States. She was also a member of the working group for The Source: Twelve Principles of Governance That Power Exceptional Boards (BoardSource, 2005) and developed a corresponding online survey. She managed “Governance Futures: New Perspectives on Nonprofit Governance” a multiyear research project that culminated in publication of Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards (John Wiley & Sons, 2005). In addition, Marla is co-author of Transforming Board Structure: Strategies for Committees and Task Forces (BoardSource, 2001) and a frequent contributor to Board Member® magazine.

 

Previously, Marla was an acquisitions editor at John Wiley & Sons, where she developed Wiley's Nonprofit Law, Finance, and Management Series and the Association of Fundraising Professionals Fund Development Series.

 

Marla holds a bachelor's degree in English from Amherst College, a master's degree in business administration from the Weatherhead School of Management, and a certificate in nonprofit management from the Mandel Center for Nonprofit Organizations, both at Case Western Reserve University. Marla served on the board of Calvary Women's Services in Washington, D.C. and on the strategic planning committee of the Mandel Center Alumni Association.