Nonprofit Board Crisis

Nonprofit Board Values #NonprofitBoards

Contrary to Groucho Marx's "I wouldn't want to be a member of a club that would have me" statement, there were those who really wanted to join but did not in the past meet the criteria for being a Boy Scout.  While I fail to totally grasp the "why" there are those who did indeed want to join a club that would have them (but not really), it appears to be the case that the Boy Scouts have listened and decided to change their values and increasingly, let more and more of the folks who would not have formerly been accepted, "in".  

Yesterday arrived the announcement by the Scouts that transgenders would be accepted as Scout members - or better put, “Our organization’s local councils will help find units that can provide for the best interest of the child."  I would pose that this is a form of but not not wholly tolerance but I suppose it's better than the alternative.  That the national Scout board is effectively permitting local units to behave as intolerant as they choose (note the policy for accepting gays as well), is a step-up from universal tolerance.  But this value, reflected in policy, does not go the full mile.  I believe it important to call-out the difference.

Bottom line: board values matter and make a difference in the way a nonprofit functions and pursues mission and affects the taxpaying public who's behalf nonprofit boards work.

Here's a Washington Post article on the latest Boy Scout modification in values.

Boy Scouts of America will allow transgender children to join

 By Katie Zezima January 30 at 8:35 PM

 

In this file photo from 2014, a Boy Scout wears his kerchief embroidered with a rainbow knot during Salt Lake City’s annual gay pride parade. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

The Boy Scouts of America announced Monday that it will allow transgender children to enroll in scouting programs.

Boy Scouts chief executive Michael Surbaugh said in a video message that the organization will now accept boys based on the gender a parent puts on a child’s scouting application, ending a policy of accepting boys based on the gender listed on a child’s birth certificate.

“We realized that referring to birth certificates as the reference point is no longer sufficient,” Surbaugh said in a video message. “Communities and state laws are now interpreting gender identity differently than society did in the past. And these new laws vary widely from state to state.”

Surbaugh said the new policy goes into effect immediately.

“Our organization’s local councils will help find units that can provide for the best interest of the child,” he said in a written statement.

The shift is a significant one for the Boy Scouts, which ended a ban on gay scouts in 2013. In 2015, the organization decided to allow gay scout leaders, a decision that came months after a council in New York defied policy and hired an openly gay scout leader, the organization’s president called for an end to the practice and the New York attorney general started investigating the group for discriminatory employment practices.

“This is another historic day for the Boy Scouts of America. The decision to allow transgender boys to participate in the Cub Scouts and the Boy Scouts is an important step forward for this American institution,” Zach Wahls, the co-founder of Scouts for Equality, said in a statement.

Last year, an eight-year-old transgender Boy Scout in New Jersey was kicked out of his troop.

“It made me mad,” the boy, Joe Maldonado, who was born a girl, told The Record newspaper in New Jersey. “I had a sad face, but I wasn’t crying. I’m way more angry than sad. My identity is a boy. If I was them, I would let every person in the world go in. It’s right to do.”

A Boy Scout spokeswoman told the New York Times last month that Joe did not meet eligibility requirements to participate in Boy Scouts.

Joe’s mother, Kristie Maldonado, told The Washington Post on Monday that she filed a discrimination complaint against the Boy Scouts in New Jersey last week and believes that was the impetus for the policy change.

Boy Scouts spokeswoman Effie Delimarkos said the organization discussed the change over the past few weeks and part of that discussion included the case of the Maldonados. Delimarkos said the organization hasn’t received the complaint Maldonado said she filed.

About the policy change, Maldonado said, “I am very happy, but it’s like a Catch-22,” because her son is no longer a scout. “No other kid this will happen to, ever again … they’re accepting all.”

 

 

Nonprofit Board Member Departure #NonprofitBoards

The following article from Carol Weisman via Terrie Timkin is a helpful reminder that a nonprofit's relationship with its board members should not end with the end of a member's term.  And while on the subject, a term limit should be thought of as an opportunity to bring on new thoughts and ideas while continuing the relationship with the departing board member.  Done well, a departing board member, like a college alumni, should become a long-term source of support for your nonprofit.

Exit Interviews for Retiring Board Members

 

DON'T JUST WHACK'EM AND PLAQUE'EM

What is the smartest thing a brave and fearless nonprofit executive can do when a board member is exiting the board? That would of course be an exit interview. And yet, this is a rare occurrence. There is always a certain amount of dynamic tension between employee and employer. What makes this situation unique is that the employee is interviewing the employer who is leaving.  After three, six or even more years of working together, there tend to be three reactions to the departure of a board member:

A real sense of loss and the question, “How are we ever going to find someone that good? I am losing a friend, a mentor, a strategic thinker, a creative fundraising, a major donor, and sometimes someone who does all of this.”

A deep sigh and a sense of opportunity that, now we can get someone “really good.”

The question, “Is the woman leaving the tall redhead or the short blond? She didn’t show up often enough for me to get to know her.”

Whatever the reaction and whether the departure is because of the end of a term or because of personal or business reasons, the executive has an opportunity to learn and grow professionally as well as ensure future positive involvement with the departing board member by asking for a final meeting. You will want to have the meeting in a home or office that is private as opposed to a busy restaurant or coffee house where your conversation could be overheard. The questions to ask in this final meeting are:

1. Did we use your talents effectively?
2. If I can call you in the future, what issue should I consult you about?
3. What did you enjoy about your time on the board?
4. What would have made it better?
5. How can I improve as a leader?

Be ready to be open to listening. Try not to be defensive and send a thank you note not only for the board service but also for the time spent in debriefing. And when the opportunity comes up to call upon a former board member, grab it.

Nonprofit Board Absence #NonprofitBoards

What happens when a great social entrepreneur does amazing stuff but doesn't have back-up or oversight to support addressing when troubles, perhaps even caused by this entrepreneur, arise?  A legal battle and possible, as in this story, facing going out of business.

This story is about a youth boxing program and the nonprofit founder/operator who ran into difficulties, perhaps of his own creation, with another individual and apparently no way to resolve the challenges between them.  And, from the Philadelphia Inquirer, no board that might have played a role as either an advisor or mediator.  

Here's a link to the story with a lesson - leaving out a board can have consequences.

Nonprofit Board Member Divorce #NonprofitBoards

Nonprofit board member divorce?  Now this is a good headline for capturing your imagination!  But wait, this headline is actually the story shared in American Nonprofits' e-magazine, Blue Avocado.  If you don't already subscribe, you are missing what I believe to be helpful and entertaining articles on matters important to those whose lives are enriched by work in the nonprofit sector.

But back to today's topic: nonprofit board member divorce.  I must admit that in my consulting practice, not everyone who wants to serve is always a perfect nonprofit board member fit.  Sometimes it's the nonprofit that is not culturally, practically or mission-wise (think theory of change) appropriate and this in not learned until months or perhaps a few years later (remembering that in my estimation, board members on average only spend about 40-50 hours a year (max) coming to meetings and maybe doing some other "stuff" as requested.  But other times it turns out that it's actually the individual themselves that is not the perfect fit - an outlier perhaps in values or behavior or just can't make it to meetings or just doesn't want to "play" the way they are asked.  

So then what?  When two parties agree (oh yes, both must have the conversation - day or days of reckoning) then departure must follow.  And basically, it's the nonprofit's house so the "other" party must go.  Well, this is what the following story speaks to.  

By the way - the following story is not in my opinion, an isolated incident.

 

Divorce and the Nonprofit Board Member

By David Beard 

Over the course of seven years, I have served on the boards of two nonprofit agencies and on the education committee of a third. I'm a professional academic, with the organizational skills and the flexible schedule that make me valuable as a volunteer leader in the nonprofit sector.

Today I will offer what I would call a case study, if it were someone else. As it's me, perhaps it would be more honest to call it a partial confession. The second year I served on the board of a regional arts organization, several board member proposed to terminate the group health plan for the four employees. The Affordable Care Act was beginning, and the opportunities for staff to choose seemed to offer cost-saving for the organization.

Staff were weak in arguing for their own benefits, talking about the ways that they were reducing cost by moving from the group plan to Medicare after they reached 65. Promising to decrease costs was not enough. I dug into the human resources literature and articulated why it was in the best interests of the organization to offer a defined health benefit to its employees: the organization would find better recruitment, better retention, and higher quality work -- derived from higher morale and better health.

The vote to retain or eliminate would be close, so I studied Robert's Rules of Order to make sure I knew the maneuvers to keep the wrong motion off the table and put the right motion forward.

I was going to manifest my beliefs about what employers owe their employees (I am active in my union at work, as well). I was going to ensure that the nonprofit I loved was able to attract the best talent, and I was going to be sure that that talent was healthy, productive, and content. I was going to Do Something Meaningful.

Simultaneously, I endured a separation and a divorce. These events, while personal, conditioned every part of my life, and -- no surprise here -- they conditioned my service in the nonprofit sector too. In retrospect, the enthusiasm and passion I brought to this fight wasn't just about healthcare. If you want to work with solid, effective board members who are surviving this kind of life change in a way effective for your work (as a staff member or fellow board member) and non-damaging for the board member, I have some thoughts and insights to share.

The board member in search of meaning

It's probably obvious, but someone enduring a divorce is enduring radical, sometimes catastrophic, change.

"Divorced individuals experience a huge psychological shift... Other shifts could include changes in the person's employment situation, changes in financial assets and security, a move to a new home or city, or changes in social patterns," according to Rebecca Nesbit in a book on marriage by Judith S. Wallerstein and Sandra Blakeslee. When a divorce begins, there is trouble ahead. According to the Utah State University Extension service, "For some, divorce seems to set in motion a process in which they end up losing everything -- jobs, homes, children, and self-esteem." Eventually, the person heals: "Fortunately, studies have found that most of these problems -- unhappiness, depression, alcohol abuse, etc. -- have largely subsided 2-3 years after the divorce." But for two or three years, you could have a person like me, or worse, on your board.

I started volunteering long before my marriage started to collapse, but research tells us that during and after divorce men experience an increased desire to volunteer. "There is some evidence that divorced men are more likely to volunteer and increase their volunteering hours," Nesbit tells us. Anyone working with a board must be ready to encounter a person working through a divorce. They may be engaged in a search for meaning through community leadership, to replace the sense of meaning that they lost in their personal life.

Meaning is the key word here. People join boards for many reasons -- to network, to advance their career, to fulfill obligations for community service appropriate to their profession, to share and ignite their passions in others. And every nonprofit wants leadership that feels that they have something to contribute and a sense of membership in the organization. But the board member enduring a life transition -- divorce, but also unemployment, death or other transformative changes -- is seeking meaning to help them work through a shift in their identity.

As I write this, in 2016, it's been three years since my wife and I separated, and it took me two years, as my therapist pointed out, to "cease living in a way which honored my vows." Even though my ex-wife had found a new relationship, I was clinging to my old identity as a spouse. When that identity was shaken, I clung harder to the other identities that brought meaning to my life.

Ronnie Schobb describes us building our identities from ourselves as individuals to ourselves as member of a social group and finally as interpersonal relationships. Divorce threatens the social and personal levels of identity. And feeling that you have something to contribute and a sense of membership in the organization is one way to re-orient the social and personal identity away from the gaping, sucking hole where marriage and family used to be.

In my case, in fighting so hard for a better benefits package, I truly had the best interests of the organization in mind. But I was also very consciously constructing a new personal identity, as someone who was an advocate for the staff, as someone who was pushing for a political commitment to health care as an employer's responsibility.

And, let's be honest, I wanted to be someone who mattered, who made a difference in the lives of the employees and the organization's mission.

I was doing the right thing for the wrong reason. Or maybe I was doing the right thing for some of the right reasons, but with some misdirected passion. In the end, I'm happy to say that the right choice was made, and we kept a strong benefits package for the employees. But the passion generated heat instead of light, and could have been managed differently, by me and by the executive director.

How can you handle the board member in search of meaning?

Blue Avocado (especially Board Cafe) is a great place to look for advice on how to deal with a board member whose energies for work in the organization are no longer only about the organization.

It may be in the best interest of the board member to resign or to request a leave of absence. The board member in question may not realize that it's in their best interest, and I promise you, a discussion that starts with a discussion of the ways that their divorce or other personal crisis is making them incapable of serving on the board will not end well. But a leave of absence may be welcome -- it maintains a meaningful relationship to the organization for the board member, while giving them time to regroup.

Having the discussion is the first step to helping the board member in search of meaning find it in a way that benefits the nonprofit too.

 

David Beard is an associate professor at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

Nonprofit Board Credibility #NonprofitBoard

Sometimes boards fail to fulfill their fiduciary duties of care.  And sometimes as a result, really bad things can happen like losing total credibility, being replaced, even being closed down.  

Such is the case for the University of Louisville Foundation - a body established to raise resources and ensure that what resources are collected are safeguarded, prosper and grow.  Well, the board failed and a new board is trying to pick-up the pieces.  And, to their credit I believe, it is the board chair who has stepped-up to represent the work and  intent of the new board.

Board Chairs do not inherently come with an operating manual about how to be a chair and how to address critical issues and most importantly, when and how to be the "face" of their nonprofit.  If any credit is to be given for this new board's effort it should be given to Ms. Medley who likely, more than most chairs, actually did come prepared with the skills, knowledge and expertise to take-on what many others might avoid.

From Insider Louisville, we can learn some of the details.

New U of L Foundation board chair says nonprofit will continue progress on reforms

By JOE SONKA | January 24, 2017 7:26 pm

Diane Medley was selected as the new board chair of the University of Louisville Foundation by its members at Tuesday’s meeting, after which she expressed confidence that the embattled nonprofit managing the school’s nearly $700 million endowment would continue efforts to restore the public’s confidence.

Medley’s selection to lead the foundation’s board fulfilled a request made in a resolution Saturday by the new iteration of the UofL board of trustees, which recently was recreated by the Kentucky General Assembly and filled with appointees of Gov. Matt Bevin. Brucie Moore had served as the foundation’s board chair — by virtue of being a trustee — since last September, but was removed from that position when the previous board of trustees was abolished by that legislation.

Medley is one of four new university trustees who were selected at Saturday’s meeting to serve on the foundation’s board, in addition to Papa John’s founder and CEO John Schnatter, former Omnicare CEO Nitin Sahney and new board of trustees chairman J. David Grissom. She had served as an at-large member of the foundation board since September, chairing a joint committee of both boards that handled the hiring and oversight of an accounting firm conducting a forensic audit of the foundation’s finances.

At Saturday’s meeting of the university trustees, Grissom introduced three other resolutions making requests of the foundation, designed “to send a very strong signal to the foundation that things have to change.” Grissom said the recently completed state audit showed that the foundation had “poor governance” and that trustees needed to keep in mind “that those assets that are over there at the University of Louisville Foundation are our assets.”

Dr. Enid Trucios-Haynes, the faculty representative on the board of trustees, interjected to say that the foundation should be recognized for “how far we’ve moved” since instituting a series of reforms last fall to increase its transparency, including the initiation of the forensic audit. Grissom disagreed with that assessment of the foundation’s progress, saying “I’ll be happy to give you a sense of it. Not very far. And not at a very good speed.”

The trustees ultimately passed a resolution urging the foundation’s board not to enter into any termination agreements or settlements with foundation employees until the forensic audit is complete, which Grissom estimates will be in early May. However, they tabled two resolutions that would have urged the foundation board not to make any investments except for public bonds or to enter into new contracts, employment or otherwise, until that audit is complete. Interim foundation director Keith Sherman said a literal interpretation of the former resolution could have a detrimental impact on the growth of its asset pool.

At Tuesday’s meeting of the foundation board, Grissom asked to take up the resolution prohibiting termination agreements or settlements, but was told that they could not do so because it was not on their original agenda. The foundation board did pass a resolution giving signature authority to the new leadership, which also specified that any foundation officer executing a contract to acquire property in excess of $400,000 must obtain the prior written approval of the board. Schnatter abstained from voting on the resolution, saying he did not fully understand it, while adding that the foundation has strayed from its mission of educating students by focusing too much on real estate investment.

After Tuesday’s meeting, Medley reaffirmed that her goal is to continue the mission of the foundation to support the university, while also restoring the public’s confidence after a turbulent year — adding that the new board members would pick up where the board had left off in recent months.

Asked if she agreed with Grissom’s previous criticism that the foundation’s reform efforts are moving too slowly, she flatly disagreed.

“I believe that we are moving,” said Medley. “I think that I’m probably more involved with what’s been going on, since I’ve been on the foundation board since September. And I’ve spoken with Mr. Grissom and I believe he’s much more comfortable with what’s been going on.”

Medley said Grissom didn’t offer any specifics about how the foundation hasn’t moved far enough or fast enough in recent months, but added “I think we’re on the same page. He and I talk every day and we’re going to continue to do that, to make sure we’re both on the same page.”

According to Medley, the forensic audit continues to progress nicely, as the contracted firm has obtained documents from the foundation and is conducting “detailed reviews” of financial and some specific accounts. She noted that the previous joint audit committee has been disbanded and is now under the full supervision of the board of trustees.

At Saturday’s meeting of the trustees, they also selected Dr. Greg Postel — currently UofL’s interim vice president for health affairs — to take over as interim university president once Dr. Neville Pinto leaves to take over the University of Cincinnati in mid-February. Postel mentioned that his top priority is to lift UofL out of the probation that was recently imposed by its accrediting agency.

 

DIANE MEDLEY, GREG POSTEL, J. DAVID GRISSOM, U OF L BOARD OF TRUSTEES, U OF L FOUNDATION, UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE

Nonprofit Sustainability #NonprofitBoards

Is it a business or a soup kitchen?  Should it rely on philanthropy to offset dependence on revenue or rely on revenues to offset dependence on philanthropy?  Who is the customer? 

These are just some of the governance questions to be answered in another "new" hybrid version of the "is it a business or is it a nonprofit" game.  The topic: pay as you choose restaurants.  These ventures are popping up, ever so slowly as a way to engage those in need with the haves and provide something that both parties will value.  The question for the board of course is not a tax structure question (501 (c) 3 or not) but a business planning (aka sustainability) question.  If you provide hiqh quality meals in a comfortable setting and some portion of the patrons will not pay for the meal, how does one cover all the costs and generate enough revenue to stay in business.

A few years ago I challenged the Panera effort at undertaking this model of service delivery.  In fact, Panera restaurants had an advantage: the corporation would essentially philanthropically offset the financial losses.  But in this latest model, the boards overseeing these ventures are not inherently gifted with deep pockets.  So imagine the board conversation around the topic of sustainability.

And yes, rather than discussing the details for the next fundraising event or what's on the menu, the effective board must be asking about what will make their venture sustainable, for the long run.  Me, I'm still dubious.

To learn more about this topic, check-out today's Washington Post article.

Nonprofit Board Fiduciary Decisions #NonprofitBoards

What happens when after many years your (nonprofit) neighborhood changes while the demand for your services also has been changing.  Should you stay or should you go?  Does your mission change?  Can you alter your mission to better serve shifting needs? These are the questions three churches in DC have asked and answered for themselves as highlighted in the following Washington Post article.  Note that each church took slightly different paths.

Development on D.C.’s waterfront presents chance for neighborhood churches to cash in

 By Julie Zauzmer January 19 at 7:00 AM

 

Construction is in full swing at DC’s Southwest Waterfront along Maine Avenue SW. Several churches on the Southwest Waterfront have come into a windfall due to development in the neighborhood. Riverside Baptist Church sold part of its land for $9.5 million. (photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

The spurt of development that has brought busy cranes to Washington’s Southwest Waterfront meant a windfall for some of the neighborhood’s most steadfast fixtures: its churches.

All of a sudden, at Riverside Baptist Church, a modest congregation of 125 souls realized it was sitting on a plot of land in high demand. St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, just down Maine Avenue SW, sensed opportunity. So did St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, right next door.

Each church struck their own deal with the developers remaking this historically quiet zone where the Washington Channel juts inland — exchanging portions of their property for big payouts and new church buildings. Now, these three cornerstones of the old Southwest community face the challenge of adjusting not just to their new footprints, but to the drastically changing neighborhood that they might draw new churchgoers from.

“The resuscitation — you could say renaissance maybe, even — of these churches is pretty remarkable in this community,” said Michael Bledsoe, the pastor at Riverside.

[Fewer churches seem to be planning trips to Trump’s inauguration. Is your church coming?]

Riverside sold part of its property to PN Hoffman, the developer creating a zone along the waterfront that it is calling The Wharf — apartment buildings, offices, 20 restaurants, even a concert space.

The church invested much of the proceeds in a new building that will cost millions of dollars, and used the rest to create the church’s first endowment. “It takes enormous courage to tell a congregation they’re going to knock the building down,” Bledsoe said. “You’ve performed these sacred rites of marriage and burial and baptism and birth. All these things take place. To say it’s a sacred space is not an exaggeration.”

Riverside traces its roots back to a church founded in 1857 in Southwest. Before the urban renewal project that tore up much of the District’s smallest quadrant in the 1950s and ’60s, it had a thousand members. Today’s congregation, little more than a tenth of the size of that one, is racially diverse, committed to progressive causes and anticipating a change in the neighborhood as more affluent, and more white, newcomers take up residence in the many new apartment buildings opening up and those still under construction.

“I don’t know what the impact of gentrification is going to be. It’s possible we’ll see more white folks showing up,” Bledsoe said. “I don’t lose a lot of sleep on whites versus everyone else. We welcome everyone. The demographic forces are kind of beyond me.”

[The waterfront redevelopment has hotels, a piano bar, a jazz club, a movie theater — and concerns]

Riverside just began demolition on its old building and won’t move into the new one until late 2018. St. Matthew’s, which was demolished back in 2008 after striking a deal with Trammel Crow Company, will finally reopen around the same time in a new church building — now part of a 221-unit apartment complex.

St. Augustine’s is much farther along that process: It began holding services in its glass-fronted new building, where construction is nearing completion, in late November.

Gazing out the huge window of her office in the brand-new building, the Rev. Martha Clark speculated about what she’ll be able to see, when the cranes go away someday. Her primo view of the water will probably be blocked by the forest of buildings that PN Hoffman is putting up. But Clark will still have the Washington Monument in her sights. And from the church’s second-floor sanctuary, whose entire front wall is made of windows stretching about 40 feet high at their peak, congregants will look out on both Washington and Jefferson’s memorials.

St. Augustine’s sanctuary is going to be the place to be when the fireworks go off on the Fourth of July and the Cherry Blossom Festival, Clark joked as she surveyed the new sanctuary.

The challenge now is making it the place to be the rest of the year too.

[People who betray Jesus can still teach us about being Christian. ‘Silence’ shows us how.]

It’s a tiny congregation, with only about 65 members for this new $7 million building, and it needs to grow quickly to maintain this facility. Clark is convinced that it can at least double in membership in the near future, drawing from the new neighbors in the condo buildingthat PN Hoffman built on the portion of the church’s property that it purchased — who are already starting to drop in for Sunday services

She also counts on new church seekers among the many District residents anxious about Donald Trump’s presidency. “With the shift in our national experience, this transition time, people are looking to the church to kind of be a place of vision and hope,” she said.

Monty Hoffman, the CEO of PN Hoffman, said he was glad his company seized the opportunity to “extract value from the land” that the churches were sitting on, as PN Hoffman crafts its new cityscape on the waterfront. And he’s glad the churches, rather than being priced out of Southwest, will stay there as neighborhood institutions.

“We’re building a community. The churches are an essential part of that,” Hoffman said. “If this just seemed like an office park with residential, or a ‘lifestyle zone,’ it would be hollow.”

He said he has been grateful to get to know the churches’ boards, including members with deep roots in the Southwest community. “It helps give this back story to some of the history here, going forward. It’s pretty fulfilling to have that reemerge and take a significant role in the future of the community.”

[Here’s what we think will be the biggest religion stories in 2017]

Bledsoe agreed with the value of having a church on the corner: “It kind of brings a human stature or level to what almost looks like a canyon of buildings.”

His church already inked the deal, sold its land, and made millions. But now comes the most joyful part, for his quiet waterfront church — giving a small portion of the money away.

“It’s an exquisite feeling,” Bledsoe said. Meeting in a middle school, since the Riverside building is being demolished right now, churchgoers presented checks totalling $100,000 last Sunday  to more than two dozen nonprofits.

This progressive church — which Bledsoe said has ordained women, unlike many Baptist churches, since the 1970s, and left the Southern Baptist Convention because of that group’s opposition to homosexuality in the early 1990s — took pride in picking out causes to support, now that it has the money to give. Some of its choices: the Gay Christian Network, the local Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League, and Casa Ruby for homeless LGBT youths.

Acts of Faith newsletter

Conversations about faith and values.Some of the money is going far afield, from an educational project in Honduras to the Malala Fund that helps girls in Pakistan and Africa. But many of the checks will be going to hunger, housing and education programs right in the church’s backyard — in the Southwest neighborhood that it has always strived to anchor, no matter what changes may come.

Nonprofit Board Recruitment #NonprofitBoards

Recruiting new nonprofit board members is a never-ending task (assuming term limits).  Often times I have heard that this task is so daunting the only criteria is that the recruit be alive.  Others do however go a step up trying to match a skill set with an organization need. Sometimes this is a fair strategy although oftentimes a bit too formulaic for my taste. I would pose that one essential criteria should be passion for mission and perhaps commitment to the organization's Theory of Change.  

Because there is minimal difference between the processes for recruiting board members and recruiting personnel, I find it helpful to review what is the latest tactics and criteria being considered in the Human Resource industry.  In a recent HR blog I found a criteria I think very helpful for nonprofit board recruitment: cultural fit.  Here's some passages I want to highlight.

Cultural fit is a measurement of how well an individual, regardless of skills and experience, can mesh with a specific company in terms of their behavior, attitude and general approach to work. And it’s becoming a watershed issue for hiring managers.

Lee Hecht Harrison recently surveyed 277 human resource managers responsible for sourcing or hiring talent to find out what it is they look for most in prospective employees. The respondents came from organizations of all sizes and major industries across North America, Latin America and Asia-Pacific.

The survey results confirmed that job-related skills and education will never be unimportant when it comes to the hiring process. In fact, a “lack of job related skills” and “lack of required technical skills and experience” were among the top issues identified in the survey by hiring managers when it came to denying candidates an interview. 

However, the biggest overall recruiting challenge facing hiring managers today is “identifying talent for cultural fit.” In fact, when asked about the importance of specific characteristics when assessing candidates, cultural fit was in second place behind only attitude.

We asked how challenging the following issues would be over the next two to three years in relation to sourcing candidates.

Why so much focus on cultural fit? Many organizations realize that while skills can always be taught to, cultural fit is something bred in the bone of a new hire. If a candidate’s values and overall attitude run contrary to the hiring organization, very little can be done to cultivate or develop those attributes.

Complicating matters is the reality that cultural fit is a nuanced quality, and as such much more difficult to identify and assess. 

Something to consider...

 

Nonprofit Governing versus Operations #NonprofitBoards

-- The chair of Trump’s inaugural committee said the president-elect is micro-managing “every detail” of the festivities. “He’s into every detail of everything,” Tom Barrack told the New York Post in an interview. “I beg him all the time to go back to running the free world and let me focus on setting the tables.”

Does your nonprofit board know the difference between governing (fiduciary policy, planning and evaluation) versus being operational and volunteering?  

Infancy and Juvenile stage and often Adolescent stage boards often face the challenge of distinguishing between governing and volunteering or being operational.  Making the distinction can matter both on increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the board and letting staff do their job effectively and efficiently.

Learning the difference begins with board meetings.

Nonprofit Leadership #NonprofitBoards

What happens when charismatic and doctrinal nonprofit founder/leaders die?  

The following article about Bishop Eddie Long is one of those founder/leaders who, having died this weekend, will provide some insight as to how, if succession planning has not prepared for this event, an organization moves on.  The story of Bishop Long also raises other questions about leader accountability and board responsibility but these topics are reserved for a future article.

But regarding succession planning, another job of a nonprofit board (think Fiduciary Duty of Care) in the case of Bishop Long, the LA Times/Atlanta Jounal-Constitution article provides no information about "what next" for the church.  Such lack of information about who will be the next leadership makes me think that the discussion was never completed.  After-all, Bishop Long was only 63 years old.  But the lesson should be clear for all nonprofit boards: executive director succession planning matters for the future life and well-being of a nonprofit.

Here's the article and if you want to learn more about developing an executive succession plan, you can start with the National Council of Nonprofits.

Bishop Eddie Long, influential pastor at Georgia megachurch, dies

Shelia M. PooleThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution

 

ATLANTA Bishop Eddie L. Long, a former corporate salesman who went on to build Georgia's New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, one of the most prominent ministries in the nation, if not the world, died Sunday after a battle with cancer.

He was 63.

 Long's influence was felt in cities beyond Lithonia such as Charlotte, N.C., and Birmingham, Ala., and outside the United States. He was a presence in DeKalb County, where he lived and often hobnobbed with celebrities, leaders in business and government, and other prominent religious leaders. He visited with President Bill Clinton at the White House and authored numerous books.

Long was loved by many, yet also reviled. He was involved in one of the biggest church scandals in the nation in 2010, when four young men accused him of sexual coercion in separate lawsuits. Before that infamous scandal, he had also faced criticism by the LGBTQ community for his views against homosexuality. In 2004, he led a march in Atlanta against same-sex marriage and other issues.

 

The Lithonia church issued a statement Sunday that Long, who became the pastor of the church in 1987, "is now spiritually healed and home with the Lord."

"Bishop Long, senior pastor of New Birth, transitioned from this life early Sunday morning after a gallant private fight with an aggressive form of cancer," the statement said.

There had been much speculation about Long's health after he posted a video last year of him looking extremely thin. He never publicly disclosed the nature of his illness.

Bishop Dale Bronner, senior pastor of Word of Faith Family Worship Cathedral, said he knew Long was very ill but continued to hope for a better outcome. "I knew he was dealing with pancreatic cancer, which is an aggressive form of cancer," he said. "We were praying for a miracle." Many supporters and church members have speculated for a long time about Long's illness, but the type of illness has not been officially confirmed by New Birth.

Before his illness, Long, the son of a Baptist minister, was a physically imposing figure known for wearing clothes that accentuated his physique, particularly his bulging biceps and pectoral muscles.

In a previous story in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Long joked, "It helps in the board meetings. In the old days, the deacons ran everything. So the pastor had to come into the board meeting pretty buffed."

He was a business major who graduated from North Carolina Central University in 1976 and maintained his close ties to that state. He was sometimes called "daddy" by the congregation, had several spiritual sons who now pastor other churches and inspired fierce loyalty.

His voice, a rumbling, sometimes warbly and baritone, was unmistakable, and he often punctuated his sermons with "watch this ... watch this" a habit sometimes picked up by other pastors.

Long recently celebrated his 29th pastor's anniversary with a grand fete at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, followed closely by a three-day summit at the church that brought pastors from both New Zealand and the Bahamas, and was topped off with a performance by gospel giant Israel Houghton.

New Birth was a place often visited by local, state and national politicians, including former Georgia Attorney General Thurbert Baker and former Gov. Roy Barnes. His church had a vibrant ministry, which supported youth programs and an academy, and provided services for the poor and those in prison.

Anthea Butler, an associate professor of religion at the University of Pennsylvania, said Long's influence cannot be dismissed.

"He was a big proponent of the prosperity gospel," she said. "He was able to grow a church from 300 people to more than 25,000. He sits alongside pastors like Creflo Dollar, Ted Haggard and T.D. Jakes in a way. He was a big part of the megachurch movement."

He also placed a big emphasis on "hyper-masculinity, which attracted a lot of men to the black church in a time when women were the primary focus," Butler said. Part of his ministry was also opposing same-sex marriage and homosexuality. "For this unfortunate ministry, which ended up culminating in four young men filing suit against him for coercion (and) the very thing he preached against, his ministry never really recovered from that," Butler said.

People described Long as personable and friendly and said he was committed to helping his members achieve financial stability.

However, he was also very guarded when it came to personal matters and, later, his health.

Elisabeth Omilami, CEO of Hosea Helps, had known Long for several years. She said he and the church often donated to her nonprofit that feeds and clothes the poor, among other things.

"He was the first one to ever provide financial assistance at the level of $100,000 a year for about four or five years," she said. "He was the first and only person that did that and continued to support us even after his own personal struggles. He made us open our eyes to what kind of funding that we should be getting."

She also came to know generosity of another sort. Years later, she found out that Long had donated money to help bury her father, civil rights veteran the Rev. Hosea Williams. "We didn't found out about that until later," she said. "We assumed that since Dad was a veteran that there was enough money to pay for his funeral, but that was not the case."

Questions about Long's health were raised in August after he posted a startling video that showed a dramatic weight loss. In it, he said he was eating raw vegan, which had contributed to the weight loss.

It was still enough to raise concern.

Just months before a much bigger, healthier-looking Long appeared on the "Steve Harvey" show to promote his book, "The Untold Story: A Story of Adversity, Pain and Resilience." Long finally conceded that he was suffering an unspecified "health challenge."

He later told the congregation that God had healed him and that "the manifestation was coming through."

As his illness progressed, Long was sometimes absent from the pulpit as rumors circulated about his condition. Most recently, during Christmas and New Year's Eve, Long, looking even more gaunt and fragile, returned to the pulpit.

At its height, New Birth had more than 25,000 members, but it declined after the lawsuits filed by Jamal Parris, Maurice Robinson, Anthony Flagg and Spencer LeGrande. All four alleged that Long gave them gifts and took them on trips and when they reached the age of consent, developed sexual relationships.

Settlements were reached in the lawsuits that included a fifth person.

Long repeatedly denied all allegations.

(c)2017 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, Ga.)

Visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, Ga.) at www.ajc.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.