Continuing on Board Decisions

I said on Friday that there were six steps that I believe will lead to a just and equitable solution for almost any issue or problem facing a board, and will give a solution that’s workable and focuses on the long-term good of the nonprofit organization. I’m going to just lay it right out there. I know the first thing most of you will say is “it’s too time-consuming.” Right? But we’ll deal with that. Let’s just see what could produce a really satisfactory result on any issue for everyone involved and for the nonprofit’s health and well-being.

1. Executive and staff explore the issue among themselves, looking into what’s wrong with the present situation, what effects it is having on the organization. They also make suggestions as to the various strategies and tactics that might be used to correct the situation and the kind of desirable outcomes they envision.

2. Executive and staff lay out a plan for the Board’s work with Board chair or a committee chair. Here’s where you get the leadership involved in an informal way, giving them the information they need to see that the problem is real, that staff are in the process of thinking it through and coming up with a solution. Here is where true Board leadership begins to have a direct impact on the institution, and where real leadership can be exercised. I think that when the planning process for how to deal with the issue or problem starts with this kind of teamwork between Board leadership and staff, you set the wheels in motion for a wise, fair and just decision that works and has everyone’s support.

3. Board chair or committee chair appoints 2 Board members to work with staff. Why such a small group? Why another committee? Don’t we have enough already? Probably, yes, but if you want a quality solution it needs to be addressed by a small group dedicated to ferreting out all the nuances of the issue, seeing all the possible solutions, then doing the deliberative thought necessary to judiciously select one or two solutions that will work with this organization at this time with the available resources and the prevailing points of view of various board members at that time.

You might be saying, “Isn’t this getting rather complicated? This is more than I have time for in my shop” And you’d be right. That’s why I suspect 90% of the time we just go ahead and bring the matter before the whole board, have a helter-skelter discussion and take whatever we can get quickly from the Board. “We’ll live with it as is,” right? But did you get the best you could? And did you get the solution that meets everyone’s needs and is most appropriate for the organization’s abilities, people and resources? That’s the rub, isn’t it?

Besides, if a problem exists for which we need the Board to create a solution, and it’s that important, then it’s worth doing well, wouldn’t you say? So let’s finish the process this afternoon.....