Board Retreat 2016
Welcome Back!
Increase Org Health & Capacity
1.
Strengthen staff capacity and support
2.
Improve coordination and alignment
among Empower Missouri’s board,
task forces & chapters (and
membership)
3.
Increase the diversity and
magnitude of Empower Missouri’s
funding - Membership
4.
Enhance board leadership and
governance – Committee Structure
Assessment Summary/Recommendations
Strengths to Build On
 Community
 Fiscal
Awareness & Advocacy Success
Oversight & Strategic Planning
Areas to Prioritize & Improve
 Mission/Program
Alignment
 “Vision” Marketing
 Member/Volunteer
 Shared
Recruitment & Engagement
Friend & Fund Raising
 Governance
Structure
Primary Board Roles & Responsibilities
A. Set Organizational Direction
1. Determine mission and
purpose
2. Ensure effective planning
C. Provide Oversight
7. Monitor and strengthen
programs and services
B. Ensure the Necessary
Resources
8. Protect assets and provide
financial oversight
3. Ensure adequate resources
9. Ensure legal and ethical
integrity
4. Select the chief executive
5. Build a competent board
6. Enhance the organization’s
public standing
10. Support and evaluate the
chief executive
Day One Reactions
Possible Priority Areas/Issues
© 2013 BoardSource
1.
2.
3.
Discuss: Board Structure &
Fundraising
Debate: Org Needs & Possible
Solutions
Decide: Priority approach for
Improving Governance &
Fundraising
Good Governance
Exceptional:
Proactive
Added Value
Responsible:
Compliant
Functional:
Of No Real
Consequence
Dysfunctional:
Disengagement
Conflict
Unconscious
Conscious
Enlightened
Traditional Governance
Model
•
Traditionally, the board governs and oversees the
operations though committees established along
functional lines but delegates the management
functions to a chief executive.
•
The enormous responsibilities of the nonprofit
board cannot be accomplished efficiently through
board meetings in which everybody does
everything
Committees: Dividing up the
Tasks
•
Goal is to make effective and efficient use of time
and resources:
-
Investigate issues and identify pros and cons of various
options
-
Develop proposals for action
-
Implement decisions as delegated
Most Common Committees:
• Executive – 79%
• Finance – 77%
• Governance – 68%
• Fundraising – 57%
• Audit* – 54%
• Program – 32%
• Marketing – 29%
Committees: Dividing up the
Tasks
•
A clear charter
•
Understanding of basic
roles and responsibilities
•
•
Structure
Board
Objectives, chair,
members
Provide effective,
actionable reports to the
board
Standing
Ad hoc/
Task Force
Advisory
Council
Decide if each committee is:
•
Standing: Permanent tasks, members rotate but tasks last
indefinitely
•
Task Force/Ad Hoc Committees: Very specific tasks to be
accomplished within a specific time frame, created as needed
•
Advisory: Provide advice and support to the organization
and its board but has no legal or formal responsibilities.
•
Organizational: Typically used when no staff (or limited
staff) for a particular function or when a group of board
members can assist with a particular project that’s a part of
the staff’s responsibility and sometimes reports to staff.
•
Work Group
Bylaws
•
Determine the organization’s structure
•
Determine the rights of the people involved in the
structure
•
Determine procedures by which rights may be
exercised
Bylaw Review
•
Membership Organization
•
Annual Membership Meeting
•
•
Officer, staff and other leaders report
•
Adopt program goals and principles
Special membership meetings as needed (called by the
President)
•
25 members and/or 25% equals quorum
Bylaw Review
•
•
Chapters
•
Geographical limits determined by the Board
•
Carry out the program as approved by the Board (based
on principles adopted by members)
•
Act on local problems in accordance with purposed and
policies (and approved by the Board)
•
Adopt bylaws (approved by the Board)
•
Set annually by the board
•
Payable in advance on the anniversary
Dues
Bylaw Review
•
Board of Directors
•
Adopt policies to clarify or enhance by-laws and
help with operation/administration
•
Formulate general program
•
Composition
•
•
Must be members
•
Officers, 20 at-large elected by members (2-year
terms), Chapter chairs (or designee), Committee
chair (or designee), Task force chair (or designee)
Meet as often as necessary (no less than 4x)
•
Meetings open to all members
•
Quorum equals 25%
Bylaw Review
•
Board determines standing committees, special
committees, task forces (and appoints chairperson)
•
•
Standing Committees
•
Executive
•
Nominating/Governance
Special Committees
•
Membership Growth & Development
•
Strategic Planning
•
Finance
•
Conference
Bylaw Review
•
Board determines standing committees,
special committees, task forces
(and appoints chairperson)
•
Task Forces
•
Affordable Housing & Homelessness
•
Criminal Justice
•
Economic Justice
•
Human Rights
•
Hunger
•
Health & Mental Health
Committee Composition
• Board committees and task forces
-
Members of the board as well as other members of the
community with skills, expertise, or perspectives
needed for the task
• Advisory groups
-
Individuals with skills, expertise, or perspectives
needed for the task
-
May be established at staff level or as advisors to the
board
Zero Based Committee
Structure
This method of forming committees prevents
committees from becoming cumbersome and helps
the organization remain innovative. Under a zero
based committee structure the board starts every
year (or two) with a clean slate of no committees.
When the organization decides its organization’s
priorities, for example through a strategic planning
process, committees are formed to address these
priorities. All committees are ad hoc and disband
once they meet their objective(s).
Your Mission
Create (and present)
a new zero-based
Governance Structure for
Empower Missouri
• 20 Minutes to Prepare (Discuss/Debate/Decide)
• 3-4 minutes to Present your model (Flip Chart)
• 3 minutes to “Defend” it to the group (Q&A)
Day Two
A. Resolved, the benefits of membership
vs. non-membership involvement with
Empower Missouri are clear.
B. Resolved, the benefits of membership
vs. non-membership involvement with
Empower Missouri are not clear.
C. Resolved, our “membership”
model continues to be relevant (and
should therefore not be changed).
D. Resolved, our “membership”
model is no longer relevant (and
should therefore be changed to a
non-member model)
E. Resolved, the price of our membership
dues for individuals ($10.00-low
income/student, $35.00-regular) and
organizations ($60.00) is sufficient and
should remain the same.
F. Resolved, the price of our membership
dues for individuals ($10.00-low
income/student, $35.00-regular) and
organizations ($60.00) is not sufficient and
should be changed.
G. The work of the advocacy task
forces is (and should continue to
be) volunteer/community
led/driven and staff supported.
H. The work of the advocacy task
forces is (and should continue to
be) staff led/driven and
volunteer/community supported.