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CASE NOTES

Laying the Groundwork for Success in 2012Leadership 401

Case One: Behind the Eight Ball

Issues

The President has taken over

President has a personal agenda Took over in the absence of a succession plan Lack of discussion with staff President-Elect busy and not stepping up Lack of dialogue between the President and the President-

Elect Board didn't provide direction to the President to take

over as he has

President appears to be enjoying the new role

The Board was unprepared

Problems accelerated by board not making quickdecisions

Some issues not taken care of (left the board in the lurch) Board does not appear to be aware of preliminary

discussions with neighbouring board

Unclear role of President-Elect in crisis situation Unclear role of Past President in crisis situation Unclear roles (expectations) of Directors Not focused on the strategic plan No attention to the importance of succession and

contingency planning

Loss of Executive Officer (EO) and need to hire new EO

Not accessing the staff to assist in the interim (lack ofcross training)

Casual approach to dealing with EO loss No contingency or succession plan in place No sense of urgency No dialogue about what is needed in a new EO - do we

need another Jack or something else?

Member concerns and confusion

Hearsay and gossip i.e. locker room email Lack of communication to members about the situation AGM coming up in a few weeks

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Case One: Behind the Eight Ball

Solutions

Call an emergency meeting

Agenda to include:- What to do- How to do it- Upcoming AGM- Process to hire new EO

Develop a 'repair plan' to address member and staffconcerns and confusion

The President needs to step aside to remove currentconflict of interest

In times of crisis, the importance of good governance ishighlighted

Develop a communication plan to members and otherstakeholders

Work from a plan - don't jump the gun Use a phased-in approach Communicate something quickly to address gossip and

misperceptions

Express the sentiment, We are continuing on with thebusiness of the association

Seek External Assistance as required to initiate an EO search

process

Legal Recruiting OREA

Develop a contingency plan and a succession plan

Contingency Plan

Contingency details (keys, passwords, codes, bankinginfo)

Do you have what you need to know to function smoothlywithout the EO? (business of the day)

Succession Plan

Needs to be very carefully developed and be kept current

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Case Two: There Has to be a Better Way

Issues

The Board is not governing effectively

a) Board appears to have no appreciation of goodgovernance

Meetings unorganized not following agendas Lack of strategic planning focusing on operations Doing committee work at the Board table Old boys club resisting change

b) Actions of some board members contribute to poorgovernance

Absenteeism leaving meetings early Too many meetings Checking messages at meetings not focused on

business at hand

Parking Lot meetings (meeting after the meeting)c) President appears to be a weak leader

No control over Board meetings Meetings with no resolution (non-productive)

The Executive Officer is operating unilaterally on some issues

Ineffective governance aggregates the EOs timecommitments

EO is circumventing the Board and acting on somematters without approval of the Board

Frustrated and hints at risk of accepting a job change -potential loss of EO

President-Elect is not stepping up

Frustrated and determined Lack of President-Elect development No partnering with President No passing of wisdom Does not appear to have spoken to President about her

concerns

Member Perceptions are damaging

Lack of communication Perception that the Board is not functioning effectively Reluctance for new people to join due to perceived weak

governance

How are members learning what's happening at the Boardtable?

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Case Two: There Has to be a Better Way

Solutions

Strengthen framework for effective governance

Review responsibilities of the Chair Review training materials and good governance resources Update / create governance policies as appropriate Take a look at streamlining committees Divide and conquer old boys club (e.g. one-on-one

meetings)

Keep senior staff person performing effectively Ensure quorum (scheduling, timing, remote participation) Orient new Board members on effective governance,

strategic planning

Ensure ample materials distributed in advance ofmeetings to aid in good decision making

Plan for ample time in meetings to have good discussionabout important issues

When dealing with contentious issues, stop and talk aboutthe criteria which will be used to address the issue / make

the decision

Share background information on why decisions weremade (context) for newer Directors

Institute attendance threshold Reconsider using Directors for committees

Communicate...communicate...communicate...

Sit down with EO - discuss problems and find solutions Damage control - communicate good work of the

association

Outreach to get people involved to stimulate newapproaches

Don't be shy as leaders to call out the 'elephant in theroom'

Start somewhere - anywhere

Communicate positive messaging Get team work going with the President, President-Elect

and EO - don't work to assumptions, dialogue instead

Use next meeting to express issues at the Board Use CRA compliance guidance for Not-For-Profit Status

agenda item at the next meeting to recommend or

implement better decision-making

Work carefully within the culture of the existing Board

Tread carefully to recognize current culture and patterns Quietly try to break apart systemic problems Develop a plan for gradual strengthening Seek objective third party assistance as appropriate