1. The Leadership Balancing Act: Establishing an Effective Partnership Between the Executive Director & Board Break for Lunch December 17, 2009 © Copyright 2009, NorthSky Nonprofit Network. All rights reserved.

2. Workshop Objectives What forms board behavior Refresher: Nonprofit Life Cycle Stage Discuss when & who takes the lead Discuss how to improve a dysfunctional working relationship Outline how to establish a strong working relationship

3. What Drives Board Behavior? History Habits Stage of organizational development Founders/ leaders Strengths of Individual Board Members

4. Organizational Life Cycle StageCharacteristics Conception/ Infancy Voluntarily coming together to solve a problem; high energy & enthusiasm Infancy Founder in charge; work expands beyond what the founder can do Puberty Org. expands but is awkward in dealing with coordination & external affairs; professional management emerges Young Adulthood More formal management, policies, and procedures; emerging politics Adulthood Mastering environment; serving clients; established management; New ideas contemplated; high energy; risk- trying to be everything

5. Organizational Life Cycle StageCharacteristics Late Adulthood Excitement beginning to wane; Past valued over innovation; Complacency; no sense of urgency or need Old Age Diminishing ability to serve others; Lack of cohesion among leaders; Little energy available for renewal and reversal of situation Revitalization Revitalization of mission; re-defining service niche

6. Whose Job Is This? Develop the strategic plan Implement the strategic plan Create the annual operating budget Create financial reports Developing financial policies & procedures Recruit new board members Develop the board agenda Fundraising Meeting with and cultivating donors

7. Board Duties & Responsibilities Duties explain how the board BEHAVES when fulfilling the Roles and Responsibilities. Roles and Responsibilities are what the board DOES.

8. Standards of Conduct: Legal Duties There are three broad “legal duties” that form the standards of conduct that all nonprofit boards are expected to adhere to: –Duty of Care –Duty of Loyalty –Duty of Obedience

9. Assigned Duties Ten Basic Responsibilities 1.Determine the organization’s mission and purpose. 2.Select the chief executive. 3.Provide proper financial oversight. 4.Ensure adequate resources. 5.Ensure legal and ethical integrity and maintain accountability. 6.Ensure effective organizational planning. 7.Recruit and orient new Board. 8.Enhance the organization’s public standing. 9.Determine, monitor, and strengthen the organization’s programs and services. 10.Support the chief executive and assess his or her performance.

10. Primary Roles of the Board Direction-Guards mission and through guidelines steers the organization OversightMonitors activities, health, and ethical behavior ResourcesEnsures that the organization is equipped to fulfill its mission

11. Primary Roles of the Executive Director Daily management Regular communication to Board about issues, progress, activities Implement Board directives

12. Oversight Board/ Executive Director BOARD Drafts board policies to protect organization, board & staff Monitor legal requirements Hires E.D. Expects regular and objective reports EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Oversees daily operations Hires staff & delegates to them Monitors staff Shares good & bad news with board

13. Planning & Evaluation Board/ Executive Director BOARD Adopts a strategic mindset by focusing on what matters most Actively participates in strategic sessions & retreats Evaluates the E.D. Evaluates its own performance Using staff reports assess NPO progress against goals EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Ensures strategic planning happens with board’s involvement Leads operational planning and approves plans for staff Ensures a process for staff performance evaluations

14. Oversight Board/ Staff Roles BOARD Makes sure adequate financial expertise on board Sets fiscal policies & ensures internal controls Approves annual budget and monitors financial reports Hires an auditor; reviews audit reports EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR With help of financial staff, prepares annual budget Provides board with regular financial statements With staff support, handles daily financial operations and monitors cash flow Defines financial policies & procedures for daily transactions

15. Fundraising Board/ Staff Roles BOARD Drafts gift acceptance policies and personal giving guidelines for board Actively participates in fundraising as directed by development staff During capital campaigns takes a lead in securing campaign success EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR With development staff, drafts fundraising plan Acts as main representative of the organization and when there is no development director communicates with funders

16. Board development Board/ Executive Director BOARD Ensures board composition reflects NPO’s needs Actively cultivates recruits Develops board policies Review bylaws Incorporates board training into board calendar Conducts board orientations EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Assigns staff to work with board committees Assigns staff to work with board on meetings, orientation, & retreats Identifies potential new board members

17. Nonprofit Boards Blurry Lines Board and staff roles- the line is drawn differently in each life stage Representing the interests of members versus the organization Serving multiple roles: committee member, volunteer and board member

18. Nonprofit Boards Does this sound familiar? Board members are unaware of issues/ problems that challenge the nonprofit. Individual board members meddle in work of staff. Individual board members ask for detailed back- up reports or custom reports –and then don’t do anything with the information.

19. Nonprofit Boards Does this sound familiar? The Executive Director becomes defensive when asked to provide reports. The Executive Director “handles” action items (develops the strategic plan, recruits new board members, etc.) without board involvement or input. The Executive sets the board agenda and creates board packet without input from the board chair.

20. Constructive Partnership Mutual respect for distinct roles Trust Candor Frequent communication Support Encourage E.D. to pose questions, offer answers, & share bad as well as good Evaluate E.D. performance annually Encourage E.D. to sharpen skills Set fair and competitive compensation package

21. How to avoid problems Clear, written role descriptions including committee descriptions Orientation for every new board & staff member Board training: roles and responsibilities Relationship building activities: social, one-on- one with E.D., one-on-one with board chair Discuss areas that aren’t clear

22. Learn how to lead a good meeting Build a strong relationship with E.D. Nurture agreement & understanding of where the organization is going Make sure the right board structure is in place Know the organization- particularly understand its finances Help secure resources for the organization Recruit talent to the board How to avoid problems: The Board Chair

23. Build a good and working relationship with the board chair Build a relationship with the entire board Learn how to plan a good board meeting Encourage strong board/staff relationships Work with the board chair to nurture agreement and understanding of vision and goals Communicate regularly with the board Keep an eye on the finances Become a good fundraiser How to Avoid Problems: The Executive Director

24. Resources that will assist you www.northskynonprofitnetwork.org www.boardsource.org www.independentsector.org www.boardcafe.org

25. Thank You Contact NorthSky at: 231.929.3934 Pam Evans 231.929.3934, x 208 pevans@northskynonprofitnetwork.org Special Thank you to: