Working with a Board of Directors

In chapter five of his recent book, Horseshoes vs Chess, Dave Adkisson, makes the statement that reporting to a board is so different than reporting to a boss.  So true!

He talked about getting your board members involved in something they want to do to support the chamber and the community.

He talked about finding a unique way to get each board member involved, which could be:

 

• Financial support;
• A go between with the mayor on a sensitive topic;
• Use a personal connection to secure a key speaker at one of your programs; or
• They might lend their marketing department to run a special membership campaign.

 

He went on to talk about the complexities of having a new boss each year (i.e., a new chairman).  I’ve talked about the important role you as the CEO should play in the nominating process so you can have input on who will be going up the chain of command.

 

His approach is more nuanced than that since he never wanted to be in a position to pick one person over another.  He would give background information that might be helpful in steering the conversation and ultimately picking the person he thought would be best, but not always.

 

I have written in the past that a Memorandum of Understanding might be worth sharing with your incoming chairman.  It lays out who is responsible for what throughout the year.  This can be shared at an orientation meeting you conduct with your incoming chairman just before they take the reigns of the organization.

 

The last thing I wanted to comment on in chapter five (there’s so much more) is the “No Surprises Rule.”  This is true for everybody no matter your status in an organization.  Always inform your boss if there is something they should know so they don’t get blindsided (manager to director, director to vice president and yes CEO to Chairman).  I think you get the idea!

 

For more resources on board governance go HERE.  For a copy of Dave’s book go HERE.

Governance: Balanced Boards

There are a lot of books and articles on the subject of this blog title and I’d like to highlight the ideas put forth by Glenn Tecker at Tecker International LLC, in a slide deck he recently shared with the association community.

He starts out by talking about the 3 key attributes you should look for when identifying potential new board members.

 

Skill set – marketing, lobbying, legal, finance, fundraising, etc.?

 

Diversity – this would include but not limited to generations, geographic, industry sector, gender, ethnic, etc.?

 

Experience – what experience do they have in the community, working on a board and knowing the work of the chamber?

 

The slide deck included a list of the “Six Key Attributes of Board Members.”  This list below is verbatim from his slide deck (Copyright 2020 Tecker International LLC).

• The ability to think strategically and analytically and to effectively communicate thoughts and the reasons for them.

• Possession of earned respect of other key stakeholder group members.

• The ability to work well with others as a member of a collaborative group with group decision-making authority and an understanding of the fiduciary duties of loyalty, care, and obedience.

• A demonstrated understanding of the differences between “oversight” and “supervision.”

• An earned reputation for emotional maturity, personal integrity, and honesty.

• A demonstrated familiarity with the body of knowledge related to both the process for which the group is responsible as well as the substantive content of the subject area within which decisions are choices will have to be made.

I wrote about the Duty of Care, Duty of Loyalty and Duty of Obedience of board members in a previous blog post that can be found HERE.

 

I’ve also talked about creating job descriptions for potential board members in previous blog posts.  Have you thought about creating a set of interview questions to ask your prospective new board members?  This is where you may want to go back to the skill set and attributes comments above for specific examples.

 

Remember, these new board members will be with the organization for the next six years, if you’re like most chambers who have two year terms renewable for three terms, and picking the right ones is key to your and your organizations success!

For more resources on board governance go HERE.

Board of Director Job Descriptions: Do you Have One?

If not, you should.

You were hired based on your qualifications and how your skill set fit the CEO job description your chamber posted.

Shouldn’t your board members be held to that same standard? I think so.

Here are just a couple of key things that should be included when creating your board of directors job description:

• Leader in the community
• Financial support
• Intellectual support
• Full participation in board meetings, monthly luncheons and annual meeting
• CEO only, if possible
• Understands the role of a board to set policy, not implement policy - that’s your job

The last bullet is key. Our boards should be made up of business leaders that are setting policy for the organization to thrive today and in the years ahead.

Worrying about the color of the napkins at the next event is not time well spent by your leadership. Sound familiar?

Sample Board of Director Job Description