BOARD DEVELOPMENT COURSE 3 SESSIONS | WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 3 & 17 |10 – 11:30AM INSTRUCTOR ANNE ACKERSON This program is made possible with support from American Express Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency

Leading by Design : Maintaining the Momentum with Training Why Train? The Training Spectrum The Wisdom of Teams Team Performance Curve Attributes of the High Performing Team Team-building Tactics Maintaining Culture, Identity and Participation Matrix of Board Activities to Training Possibilities Logistics and Tips 1

Why Train?

The Training Spectrum

The Wisdom of Teams

Team Performance Curve

Attributes of the High Performing Team

Team-building Tactics

Maintaining Culture, Identity and Participation

Matrix of Board Activities to Training Possibilities

Logistics and Tips

Why Train? 2 “ Training is a mixture of knowledge and skills. ” – Lew Ireland, Ph.D. President of the American Society for the Advancement of Project Management You have just formed the board You have many new board members You have just experienced a significant turnover of board members Your board has never received any formal training on how to be a board or decided what kind of board they want to be Your board could benefit from a “ refresher ” on some fundamental principles of board effectiveness The board is attempting to create something new

You have just formed the board

You have many new board members

You have just experienced a significant turnover of board members

Your board has never received any formal training on how to be a board or decided what kind of board they want to be

Your board could benefit from a “ refresher ” on some fundamental principles of board effectiveness

The board is attempting to create something new

Before embarking on training activities, ask yourself: Will training be used to address deficiencies of knowledge or skill among the board members, or deficiencies of execution in getting meaningful results? ( Mike Hoff Former Nonprofit Services Education & Consulting Director, Center for Nonprofit Management, Los Angeles) Deficiencies in Knowledge or Skills Deficiencies of Execution to Get Meaningful Results Board roles and responsibilities Poor management of meetings Structuring the work of the board to optimize effectiveness Poor decision-making and problem solving Developing the appropriate working relationship with professional staff Strained interpersonal relationships among board members and between board and staff Understanding and accepting the role of fiduciary oversight Little or no accountability for results Understanding and accepting responsibility for fundraising and resource development Unwillingness to raise money Competing personal agendas Unresolved disagreements/conflicts Unproductive work practices

The Training Spectrum 4 The more interactive the training, the higher the level of board engagement.

5

The Wisdom of Teams “ Teams are a flexible and efficient way to enhance organizational performance. They are the key to improving performance in all kinds of organizations. Yet today's business leaders consistently overlook opportunities to exploit their potential, confusing teams with teamwork, empowerment, or participative management. In The Wisdom of Teams , the authors argue that we cannot meet the challenges ahead – from total quality to customer service to innovation – without teams.” Book of the same title by Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith, 1999

“ Teams are a flexible and efficient way to enhance organizational performance. They are the key to improving performance in all kinds of organizations. Yet today's business leaders consistently overlook opportunities to exploit their potential, confusing teams with teamwork, empowerment, or participative management.

In The Wisdom of Teams , the authors argue that we cannot meet the challenges ahead – from total quality to customer service to innovation – without teams.”

Team Performance Curve Katzenbach and Smith have found there is a team performance curve on which different kinds of teams exist from work groups to high performance team. 7 Performance Impact

Katzenbach and Smith have found there is a team performance curve on which different kinds of teams exist from work groups to high performance team.

Attributes of the High Performing Team Small in number Complementary skills Meaningful purpose or mission Clear, measurable goals Clear working approach Sense of mutual accountability 8 Katzenbach and Smith have identified these six attributes of the high performing team: Can nonprofit boards be high performing teams? Is yours?

Small in number

Complementary skills

Meaningful purpose or mission

Clear, measurable goals

Clear working approach

Sense of mutual accountability

Team Building Tactics Develop a mission statement for the board itself Select team members based on skills, not personalities Pay particular attention to first meetings and actions Set up some clear rules of behavior Set and seize upon a few immediate performance-oriented tasks and goals Challenge the group regularly with fresh facts and information Spend lots of time together Exploit the power of positive feedback recognition and reward

Develop a mission statement for the board itself

Select team members based on skills, not personalities

Pay particular attention to first meetings and actions

Set up some clear rules of behavior

Set and seize upon a few immediate performance-oriented tasks and goals

Challenge the group regularly with fresh facts and information

Spend lots of time together

Exploit the power of positive feedback recognition and reward

Maintaining Culture, Identity and Participation Understand and share the history of your organization Periodically tell stories about how the organization was founded; how it overcame obstacles; its high points and low points As a group, create a timeline for the organization’s development; put the timeline in a visible location where board, volunteers and staff can see it and add to it Take time to celebrate the good stuff .. And the small wins 8 Revisit the basics on a regular basis Talk about the purpose, approach Inject new information and approaches into the board’s ongoing wor k Fresh facts and different perspectives keep people engaged Take advantage of facilitators and training Change the board’s membership, including the leader

Understand and share the history of your organization

Periodically tell stories about how the organization was founded; how it overcame obstacles; its high points and low points

As a group, create a timeline for the organization’s development; put the timeline in a visible location where board, volunteers and staff can see it and add to it

Take time to celebrate the good stuff .. And the small wins

Revisit the basics on a regular basis

Talk about the purpose, approach

Inject new information and approaches into the board’s ongoing wor k

Fresh facts and different perspectives keep people engaged

Matrix of Board Activities to Training Possibilities 9 High Training Potential Low Training Potential

Logistics and Tips Provide training prep materials and agendas to participants in advance Develop agendas that use a variety of learning methods and that vary the size of the group Develop agendas that accommodate breaks and movement of people Flipchart the discussion Offer opportunities during training and immediately after to debrief what is being learned and how it might be applied Begin and end on time Follow-up with pertinent new information

Provide training prep materials and agendas to participants in advance

Develop agendas that use a variety of learning methods and that vary the size of the group

Develop agendas that accommodate breaks and movement of people

Flipchart the discussion

Offer opportunities during training and immediately after to debrief what is being learned and how it might be applied

Begin and end on time

Follow-up with pertinent new information

Is Your Board Room Conducive to Building a High Performing Team? Which of these pictures looks like your board meeting space?

Physical Considerations Table Configuration Comfortable chairs Good Lighting Not too hot or too cold Room large enough for folks to get up and stretch/break into smaller discussion groups Wall space for flipcharts Nametags or table tags Refreshments or meals if the session spans a meal time 14

Table Configuration

Comfortable chairs

Good Lighting

Not too hot or too cold

Room large enough for folks to get up and stretch/break into smaller discussion groups

Wall space for flipcharts

Nametags or table tags

Refreshments or meals if the session spans a meal time

NYS ARTS BLOG www.nysarts.typepad.com Webinars on the BLOG! Ask questions Review Topics Share information Explore new ideas Next Session Wednesday September 17th “ Leadership in Transition” On to the Blog! If you were to create a matrix of your current training opportunities, what would it look like? How would you move low training potential/low board involvement activities into higher quadrants? 14

Webinars on the BLOG!

Ask questions

Review Topics

Share information

Explore new ideas

Next Session Wednesday September 17th

“ Leadership in Transition”

On to the Blog!

If you were to create a matrix of your current training opportunities, what would it look like?

How would you move low training potential/low board involvement activities into higher quadrants?