TEDDY ROOSEVELT SAID "THE TEST OF OUR WORTH IS THE
SERVICE WE RENDER."
Service on the board of a
private school or non profit isn't simply an honor granted in recognition
of your professional achievements or the fact that you're the only one left
standing the last AGM. It involves legal obligations and a significant
responsibility for the stewardship of your school's mission and assets, the
educational experience of your students, and careers of your staff.
You and your fellow
trustees have the primary legal and moral responsibility for the governance
of your non profit and ensuring that the mission of your school is carried
out.
To achieve your mission,
you must maintain the confidence, moral, and financial support of your
members, donors, volunteers and stakeholders. These critically important
aspects of non profit governance depend on you and your fellow directors
effectively governing your school based on best practices, and a clear
understanding of your roles and responsibilities.
It's important for you to
pay close attention to these responsibilities because non profits are
garnering greater attention today. Non profits are being called upon to
play greater roles in their schools. And your community has higher
expectations about the conduct of your board. If problems surface, it is
only natural to ask, "Where was the board?" Are your trustees
prepared?
RESPONSIBILITIES OF AN
EFFECTIVE BOARD
A non profit's board of
directors is responsible for defining the school's mission and providing
overall leadership and strategic direction for the school. Their
responsibilities include:
- Determining
and articulating the school's mission, vision, and values
- Recruiting
and selecting the school's Head of School
- Supporting
and assessing the performance of the school's Head
- Ensuring
that the school engages in planning for its future
- Determining
the programs that the school will deliver to implement its strategies
and accomplish its goals; monitoring the performance of these programs
to ensure their value
- Ensuring
that the school has financial and other resources adequate to
implement its plans
- Ensuring the
effective management and use of the school's finances
- Enhancing
the school's credibility and public image
- Ensuring
organizational integrity and accountability
- Assessing
and developing the board's own effectiveness
GOVERN MORE AND MANAGE
LESS
Do you have a
"great" board? What makes an effective board...what's their
secret to long-term success?
Research shows that great
boards have a set of common attributes that clearly separates them from
others. Effective boards need to govern more and manage less and focus on:
- Developing a
strategic plan and following it through an action plan
- Linking
board agenda to strategic agenda
- Monitoring
success of the school's initiatives and adjusting course as needed
- Developing
clear expectations and plan of action for Trustees to support the plan
- Directing
the Head of School to prepare strategically via an annual operational
plan
- Establishing
committees to monitor goals
- Structuring
meetings to policy and strategy, not day-to-day operations
- Annually
assessing the performance of the board and committees based on the
plan's priorities
- Focusing on
policy, organizational strategy, and the relationship between budget
and priorities
- Using board
committee to monitor strategic initiatives and reporting to board for
action
Every board should take the
time to fine tune their practices to ensure that they leading the school
effectively and coordinating the combined resources of their board members
and Head of School. Is your board firing on all cylinders?
PRACTICAL WORKSHOP TO
IMPROVE BOARD PERFORMANCE
If you'd like to
proactively improve your board's performance for the coming school year or
plan a retreat to fine tune your board for this fall, you should seriously
consider our board governance workshop. Our workshop will provide feedback
to analyze and develop a clear set of strategies to guide your school's
leadership with ongoing development. Whether you require training in
strategic board structure and function, need an objective expert opinion on
a particular issue, or would like our assistance in formulating your
board's agenda, the workshop will move your Board forward.
OUR ONE-DAY WORKSHOP
INCLUDES:
- Facilitation
of a one-day workshop that assists your board in developing strategies
and tactics to close your performance gap for the governance of your
school.
- A
comprehensive 360° online "Board Performance Self-Assessment
Survey" that candidly and anonymously assesses your board's
performance.
- An
interactive presentation on best practices of school governance.
- Participation
in hands-on case scenarios that highlight effective board practices
and engage discussions on parallel issues of your own school, which
apply research to your own situation.
- Utilize the
results of your Board Performance Self-Assessment Survey to build a
profile of your board's performance gaps based on a comprehensive
analysis of your confidential responses to the online survey and
identify areas needing immediate improvement.
- As part of
the process, Board members will candidly discuss and reach consensus
on issues surrounding the performance of the board and lay the
groundwork for long-term improvement.
- Board
Performance Report: This will include working with board members to development
a "Board Performance Report" that provides a comprehensive
overview of the board's survey results, issues, and a plan of action
for improvement. The report identifies areas needing immediate focus
and the 'roll-out' of a set of multiple strategies to enhance the
board's overall development.
Next Step
If you would like to build a better board to
effectively lead your school, and would like to find out more about HEG's
board governance workshop, please contact Doug Halladay directly by sending an email to info@halladayeducationgroup.com or calling HEG at
1-604-868-0002. Be ready for the coming school year by having your board
retreat booked in your calendar now.
To your success,
Douglas Halladay
President
Halladay Education Group
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