So here's the situation. There's this nonprofit board. And on this board, there's a variety of people who at one time or another, cared passionately about the people their organization serves. But over the past few years, this board has lost its way.
Now, the board meetings are taken up with conversation about how they don't like this thing or that about the organization, its staff and sometimes, other board members. The board doesn't spend any more time on decisions about the future of the organization but spends a lot of time thinking about how to get "better staff". There's even been some complaints by former board members and staff to the authorities about the way business has been conducted and whether this decision or that was really legal. And board members keep falling away leaving just a small group of like-minded people more or less minding the store.
And there's really not anything anyone can do. If this situation became a really public matter, donors might not want to give anymore and all kinds of authorities might want to investigate and the only ones who would really be punished would be the clients. At least for a while.
So what to do? Maybe this is just one of those nonprofits going through one of those really bad periods in its life cycle when not so good things happen but eventually they turn around? But maybe the short term losses that would incur with immediate and public action are really the only answer and yes, there will be tears but that too would stop for the better. Maybe.
Thoughts anyone?