Nonprofit Board:Exec Relationships

Here's some thoughts on how to improve board performance as related to the exec offered by Eugene Fram (Policies vs. Paperclips).

• At least half of the board should be composed of people who really understand a director's responsibility and liability;
• Hire the best chief executive as possible, within the realistic compromises all organizations have to make;
• Provide maximum operating responsibility for the chief executive;
• Have well agreed upon outcome/impact expectations between the board and the chief executive, both qualitatively and quantitatively; and,
• Have fair and rigorous evaluation of outcomes/impacts.

Sounds right -- not so easy.

Comments

[Brent]

One difficulty that I've seen in an organization stems from the turnover in a board of directors, such that those people who hired and first set the direction for an executive director are not necessarily the same people the executive director now reports to. In such an organization it seems that there needs to be a method for outgoing and continuing board members to pass the torch to incoming board members, such that the incoming board members fully understand the existing mandates, direction, and working relationship the board has established with the executive director.

Unfortunately it seems that as the long-term partner in the relationship it can fall upon the executive director to be the torch-bearer, taking on the responsibility (for good or ill) of board member education. This is particularly true for incoming board members who may have never previously held a board position in any organization. This can be unfortunate in that the executive director who reports to the board then appears, despite good intentions, to be instructing the board in the way they should conduct their business, and can also ruffle the feathers of directors who have more experience as board members.

I would be interested in reading your thoughts on various governance models for organizations. I am most familiar with the Carver Policy Governance Model http://www.carvergovernance.com/model.htm though I've never heard a disinterested analysis/review of its strengths and weaknesses. I am sure there are other governance models out there, and would be most interested in hearing about experiences with them. I'm certain the success of any governance models really rise and fall in large part upon the commitment (or lack thereof) the board of directors has to governing according to the model and managing executive director expectations and responsibilities accordingly.