There always comes the point in an organization when the natural order of things is change. Whether that change is an executive transition, upheaval in the Board of Directors, or even things greater than that. Things such as what should we do as an organization? Stay the same? Merge with another organization? Or even cease […]
Interestingly enough, I met with a wonderful and highly intelligent gentleman this past week. As we were eating lunch, we started talking about systems thinking. It reminded me of a mentor who once said that we needed to be reading people like Peter Senge. I could never really make the correlation between Peter Senge’s highly […]
Good governance doesn’t end at creating a Governance Committee of the board or even of establishing processes for governance such as policies and procedures, or even developing new committee structures. Governance has only begun. It continues with a well formed and crafted agenda for all meetings both at the Board and, most especially, at the committee […]
So, who leads the governance process? Is it the Board? Is it the staff? I wondered to what role does the staff or Board play in shifting a culture that is not longer useful? In fact, sometimes a management culture can be downright disruptive after an organization has reached a particular place in its life […]
We often talk about banning jargon when we speak to others about our organization. And, that is so needed. But, I would like to take it one step further, and say that we are not here to “educate” our donors about what we do. They don’t care about the specifics. There, I said it. Truly, […]
The founder. What does that mean to be a founder of an organization? And, how does that impact the relationship with your Board of Directors? Organizations have natural life cycles and founders play a unique role in the organization that the found. There is growth and with growth comes pains. For founders, what was once […]
How big is your need? Interestingly enough, a group that I am currently working with is in the process of conducting an outside needs assessment. I think this is such a wise move. Over the years, I have led strategic planning and board development for quite some time. For those groups who have engaged […]
The lens of mission must guide everything that a Board of Directors decides in an organization. Everything. Board members are the vanguard of the mission. They develop it; they refine it, and they ensure it. They ensure that the organization is meeting the needs of those that they serve through assessing the community during a […]
Ah, Board committees. Now, we get knee deeper into confusion. So, keeping the Board focused on governance is challenging work. Keeping the committees focused on governance seems at times almost impossible. A few observations from the field. Just like with Board of Directors, Board committee’s need position descriptions and expectations. Now, I won’t recommend specific […]
Last week, I noted how all-volunteer and small staffed organizations must engage in governance at the Board level. I pointed out that one of the first steps is to secure commitment to change. Some groups may not want to change and need to wrestle with the question of “what does not changing mean for our […]
Board governance is challenging work. It is especially difficult for smaller organizations. Even more so in all volunteer organizations. When organizations lack staff including an Executive Director, it is the Board of Directors who often fills in the “gap” of responsibility regarding getting the day to day activities of the organization done. Board members may […]
This past weekend, I embarked on an event that frightened me. Literally and figuratively. You see, several months ago, I entered a lottery. And, the drawing was for a chance to run up Mt. Washington in the Mt. Washington Auto Road Race. I got in. At the time, it seemed fabulous. Then as reality dawned, […]
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