Transcript Ronald McDonald House Charities

Kansas Health Foundation
Building a High-Impact Board
High Impact Boards© Workshop
2015 RECOGNITION GRANT CONFERENCE
April 9, 2015
Presented by:
Denise McNerney
President
iBossWell, Inc.
Today’s Agenda
• The Case for Growth and Change
• The Challenges of Execution: 7 Realities of Not-
for-Profit Boards
• Taking our Board to the Next Level: High-impact
Boards (a self-assessment & discussion)
• Planning for Action & Results: Next Steps
• Handling Difficult Conversations
Challenges Faced by Boards
Copyright iBossWell, Inc. 2012 All rights reserved
“The 7 Realities of Nonprofit Boards”
from The Strategic Board by Mark Light
1. Board members simply do not have
enough time to give to the task
•
20 hours vs 2080+ hours (<1%)
2. Boards have imperfect knowledge to
make good decisions
•
•
Distance from organization
Paradox of dependence on ED
3. Members can get “lost in the crowd”
of a large board
4. Composition of board is typically
haphazard

Members chosen for a variety of reasons
5. Boards & members rarely suffer
consequences for poor performance

Lack of clear guidelines and/or adherence
6. Lack of continuity of member voice from
meeting to meeting/year to year.

Poor attendance, usual turnover, etc.
7. Boards must rely heavily on ED.



Time challenges of information sharing
Inexperience both of Board & ED
paradox
Characteristics & Practices of
High-Impact Boards
High-Impact Boards – Workshop Process
 Self-examination
 Identify specific actions for
improvement – that can take
the board to that next level
of excellence/high-impact!
1. Stay strategically focused on the mission and its
relevance for the future
Ensure Mission is accurate and valid for the future
needs of the community
All decisions are Mission-driven
Keep eye on the future by ensuring development of
a strategic plan, including measures of success for
goals/objectives
Determine and monitor programs & services to
ensure mission relevance and overall effectiveness.
2. Take accountability for their performance and
discipline themselves to get the work done, thus
adding significant value to the organization
Make a difference measured by: resources, performance,
influence – reaching KPM’s
Leading/partner role vs audience for staff work
Conduct annual board self-evaluation
Explicit board job description
Hold members accountable to meeting board responsibilities
Board manages its own conflicts
Embrace innovation and creativity
3. Operate for maximum results
• Strong Board culture focused on effectiveness/values
• Focus on mission & key strategic direction
• Institutionalizes strategic plan oversight and support of effective
execution
• Committee structure aligned with key initiatives
• Meeting agendas
• Overview of accomplishments of goals
• Committed to continuous growth & improvement
• Clear decision-making process
• Board members all support “equal voice”
• Board & Committee meetings maximize member’s time and
efforts
• Clear, written committee roles
• Committees don’t burden staff
4. Recruit, prepare and retain the right people to serve
on the board and support their
capacity to lead.
• Committed to inclusiveness
• Identify their collective needs
• Create and utilize board matrix
• Capitalize on member’s expertise & networks
• Recruits understand responsibilities/expectations
• Orient new members
• Board member “exposure” to org
• On-going development for all members as
appropriate/needed
5. Use a comprehensive communication
strategy
• Effective, two-way communication between board
and executive leadership.
• Keep each other well informed
• Clarify and Respect appropriate communication channels
(e.g. information sharing, problem solving, decisionmaking, etc.)
• Maximizes technology
• Email
• Proxy voting
• Tele/internet conferencing
6. Understand the markets the organization
serves
• Spends time learning about the clients,
funders
• Understands the unique niche the
organization serves
• Pays attention to what’s happening in the
political, economic, technology, & social
ecosystems in which the organization
operates
7. “Ambassadors”/ Friend Raisers” for the
Organization
Articulate the vision, mission & values
clearly
Each member specifically promotes the
organization through their own contact
networks as appropriate.
8. Stay actively engaged in fund raising for
the organization
Each board member understands and is committed
to the role everyone, board & staff, plays in fund
raising.
Each board member maximizes their networks to
identify opportunities.
Each member makes a personal monetary
contribution to the organization.
Each member actively supports fund raising
events/activities, including planning,
preparation and attendance.
9. Support & work in partnership with
ED/CEO & Staff
• Recognize & welcome support and expertise of
ED/CEO & Staff
• Jointly agree on ED performance expectations
in alignment with strategic plan
• Provide clear, timely performance support
process, including annual evaluation for
ED/CEO
• Ensures appropriate, inclusive evaluation process
(e.g. 360 input periodically)
• Full board approves annual evaluation of ED/CEO;
and plans delivery of evaluation including who and
what.
Next Steps
• Planning for Action & Results – including:
• Specific Action Required
• Responsible Party(s)
• Timeframe
• Progress Reporting
• By whom/to whom, how, & when
Copyright iBossWell, Inc. 2006
“Greatness is not a function of
circumstance.
Greatness, it turns out, is largely a
matter of conscious choice, and
discipline.”
Jim Collins
Good to Great in the Social Sector
Handling Difficult Conversations
Situations for Role Play
A. Your board has a performance expectation that all
members attend at least 80% of meetings annually. A
long time member attended only 20%.
B. A board committee brings an idea for a new special
event fund-raiser to the table. It is not part of the
strategic plan.
C. A staff member approaches a board member with a
complaint about how finances are being handled.
D. A mid year review reveals that many of the tactics in
strategic plan that were supposed to be completed in
the current year have not been started.
“Board members can be successful strategic leaders
if they nurture their sense of group responsibility. All
members must be willing to challenge and urge
each other on to big dreams, lucid values, and
fidelity to their trusteeship. All members must
cherish diversity in viewpoints as well as the
challenge of reaching an unambiguous, single
board position derived from that diversity. All
members must strive for accountability in the
board’s job, confident that if quality dwells in the
boardroom, the rest of the organization will take
care of itself.”
from John & Miriam Carver. Carver Guide 2: Your roles and responsibilities as a board member.
Jossey-Bass. 1996
For additional information
and/or Copyright Use Permission
Contact:
Denise McNerney
President
iBossWell, Inc.
5600 W. 95th Street, Suite 108
Overland Park, KS 66207
[email protected]
913-642-1416
www.ibosswell.com
High Impact Boards© is Copyright of iBossWell, Inc. 2015.
All rights reserved.
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