Tips From The Trenches

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/ban.30364
• Published date: 01 November 2016
• Date: 01 November 2016

November 2016 • Volume 33, Number 3 7

DOI 10.1002/ban© 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company • All rights reserved

Tips From The Trenches

Making motions shouldn’t bog down

your meetings

If the board’s meeting comes to a screeching

halt when a motion is needed, the executive direc-

tor needs to step up. Here are four tips that can

help your board:

1. Draft motions before the meeting. The

board will then have the wording it requires, the

language will be correct and the CEO will be better

prepared to respond to questions and comments

at the meeting.

2. Be prepared to offer insight into how to

improve a motion and make it clearer and easy

to understand. After all, you will be the person

responsible for carrying out the motion.

3. Clarify before voting. The chairperson

should repeat the motion to ensure it will be re-

corded as intended. Always ensure the board asks

questions before voting if members appear uncer-

tain. It is always easier to answer questions than

fix mistakes.

4. Seek assistance from a professional. When

wording a motion properly is critical or technical,

it is good to obtain professional advice. ■

Avoid board problems:

Insist on an annual CEO evaluation

Administrators who end up on the outs with

their boards typically don’t have an annual evalua-

tion process in place.

When the full board participates in the annual

evaluation, it allows all board members to offload

their minor grievances and annoyances with the

executive director before they become major road-

blocks to a healthy relationship.

Here’s another benefit: If the executive has

several years of positive evaluations, it makes it

difficult for the board or individual members to

suddenly decide the administrator is not doing

his job properly. That gives the executive direc-

tor a strong position to fall back on—his long-

term performance as evidenced by past evalua-

tions. ■

State respective roles in board policy

For the health of the board and administrator

relationship, the board should make clear what

functions the board and administrator are respon-

sible for at the organization.

Such a policy benefits the executive director in

several ways: It can be used to orient new board

members to the board and administrator relation-

ship and also can be employed by the CEO and/or

chair whenever questions arise about who should

be doing what.

Here is sample language for your board to

consider:

“The board believes that setting policy is its

most important function, and that the execution of

the board’s policies should be the function of the

executive director.

“Delegation by the board of its executive powers

to the executive director provides freedom for the

administrator to manage the organization’s op-

erations within the board’s policies, and frees the

Board chair needs condence

in the CEO

Todd Gibby, writing in Board Effect’s article,

“What are the Executive Director Responsibili-

ties?” believes the board chair needs strong

faith in the administrator for the relationship to

succeed.

The CEO should also be “open to construc-

tive—and even occasionally critical—feedback

that can elevate the organization’s perfor-

mance,” Gibby writes. “Speaking from experi-

ence, fulfilling these seemingly straightforward

requirements can be surprisingly difficult for us

CEOs. This may help explain many of the com-

plexities that can make successful partnerships

between executive directors and board chairs a

rarity.”

For more information, go to http://goo.gl/

dejl2W. ■

board to devote its time to the policymaking and

monitoring functions.

“The board holds the executive director respon-

sible for carrying out its policies within established

guidelines and for keeping the board informed

about operations.” ■