PLANNING FOR BOARD
LEADER SUCCESSION
a CBLD Online Recorded Workshop
presented by Marshall Kovitz and Michael Healy
Slides and recording can be found in the CBLD Library
h"ps://cdsconsul-ng.centraldesktop.com/cbld/Library For informa*on on CBLD email MarkGoehring@cdsconsul*ng.coop
CBLD Program Overview
! What is CBLD? Coopera1ve Board Leadership Development A program provided by CDS Consul1ng Co-­‐op ! www.cdsconsulting.coop/cbld
! Online recorded workshops
! Field Guide: online resource about specific topics
! CBL101: an in-person multi-co-op training especially designed for newly
elected directors (but useful for all directors and GMs)
! Planning and facilitation of an all-day board retreat
! Consulting hours for ongoing support for the board throughout the year
! CBLD Library: https://cdsconsulting.centraldesktop.com/cbld/Library
DESIRED OUTCOMES
! Participants understand why it’s important
to have an effective board leader.
! Participants know what to look for in an
effective board leader.
! Participants understand the importance of
having a plan for board leader succession.
! Participants have resources for creating
and implementing the board leader
succession plan.
Guest Speakers
Carolyn Micek
Mary Pat Linck
Why does leadership matter?
! As the board’s servant-leader, the president
supports and nurtures board wholeness.
! The president helps the board maintain
discipline – always a hard thing for groups to
accomplish.
! The president keeps the board on track
through the creation of good agendas based
on the board’s plan.
! The president pays attention to the long-term
ability of the board to govern well.
Why Is A Succession Plan
Important?
! We can expect – and should plan for – regular board
turnover from elections, term limits and resignations.
! Without a leadership succession plan, we risk disrupting the
board’s momentum and effectiveness during the transition
from an old to a new leader.
! Just as a board should know that a succession plan exists
for the GM, the same is true for the president.
! Let’s not just sit back and hope for the best: leaders lead!
What Are We Looking For In A Board
Leader?
! Someone with all the usual qualities of a good
director (see “Perpetuating a Strong Board” in the
CBLD Library) plus:
! Someone willing and able to be a servant-leader
to the board.
Servant Leadership
! The Servant-Leader is motivated first by the desire to
serve.
! Conscious choice then brings one to aspire to lead.
! The highest priorities of a Servant Leader are to meet the
needs of those served and to help them grow as
individuals.
! This concept can apply to both to the president as leader
of the board and to the full board in its governance role.
! Learn more about Robert K. Greenleaf and Servant
Leadership at www.greenleaf.org.
Some helpful attributes of board leaders
! Skilled in communication and collaboration
! Ability to identify important governance issues and
bring them to the board
! Good understanding of board process agreements
! Comfortable asserting appropriate authority
necessary to keep the board within its policies
! Ability to implement and delegate the administrative
details of leading
! Has sufficient (but not too much!) time to do the work
Identifying Future Board Leaders
! It’s every board member’s job—but especially the
president’s—to recruit leadership candidates.
! In some cases future leaders are obvious, based
on their board work.
! In other cases, it takes time to develop a board
member’s leadership skills.
! Start by offering everyone opportunities to lead,
and observe the results.
Approaching a “reluctant” successor
! Arrange to talk to in private.
! Tell him/her you believe that she/he would make a
good board leader. Explain why.
! Explain that you will provide training and ongoing
support.
! Don’t request a response immediately. Ask her/
him to think about it, come up with questions or
concerns and talk more later.
Ongoing Leadership
Opportunities
! Chairing a committee.
! Taking on smaller tasks such as:
– Leading a board study discussion
– Facilitating the monthly meeting
– Writing articles for the board
– What else?
! In all cases, the current board leader should
monitor work and provide advice and support.
Training an identified successor
! This is the president’s
responsibility
! “Model, Lead, Test”
! Model: Describe what you do as you are
doing it. (i.e., agenda creation)
! Lead: Let the successor try their hand,
with guidance.
! Test: Stay out of the way. Debrief.
Training opportunities
!
!
!
!
Attend CBL 101
Attend CCMA
Monthly consultant calls.
Participate when the president
represents the board to the GM, to
owners and to the community.
Role Of The Full Board
! The whole board is ultimately responsible
for choosing their own leader – through
officer elections.
! The board could possibly choose a
president-elect. (like the Marquette
example)
! Whatever the board is doing, the president
should still be planning for succession.
A Note About The Vice President
! We customarily think of the vice president as the
person who succeeds the president, though this
is not essential.
! The president-elect and vice president could be
considered the same position.
! If you don’t have a whole board agreement to treat
the positions as equivalent, then don’t assume
that the vice president will succeed the president.
Sample Process (I)
! Start at (or soon after) the first meeting which
includes newly elected board members.
– President explains need for always having qualified
successors available.
– President discusses her/his plans. Ideally,
president should be planning his/her own
intentions at least 1 year in advance.
– President invites all to consider a leadership role
and if interested, to contact the president outside
the meeting.
Sample Process (II)
! President meets informally with directors
interested in leadership role
– President explains duties, answers questions.
– President provides a list of learning materials and
activities (see attached documents).
– President and director discuss currently available
leadership opportunities, open committee chairs,
new tasks, etc.
– Tentative agreement on a leadership development
plan.
Sample Process (III)
! President reports periodically throughout the year on
progress in identifying potential successors.
– Who is in training
– Status of their leadership development plan.
! If there are no identified potential successors mid-way
through the year, board decides next steps.
– Ask someone to train as emergency back up.
– Verify current president’s plans.
– Continue to explore possibilities with other board members.
Resources
! Carver, John. The Chairperson’s Role as ServantLeader to the Board. The Carver Guide series on
effective board governance, #4. Jossey-Bass, 1997.
! Greenleaf, Robert K. Servant Leadership: A Journey
into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness.
New York: Paulist Press, 1977.
! CBLD Policy Template, in the Library