Board Growth, Development & Engagement
“Not every organization with a great board will achieve its highest and best purpose, but no organization will achieve its highest and best purpose without a great board.”
A vibrant, right-sized, diverse, independent, and engaged Board is critical to the long-term success of any organization and often makes the difference between “good” and “great.”
Our team has helped small, disengaged Boards become bigger, better Boards. And we’ve helped well-established, high-performing Boards move “from good to great” in their engagement, effectiveness, and evolution.
In all cases, we use a single, simplified approach to scalable and sustainable Board growth and development that, if well implemented, remains a value to the organization indefinitely.
Our Board Growth & Development process is most often comprised of a 3-phased approach, outlined below.
PHASE 1 - ASSESSMENT & WORKING GROUP ENGAGEMENT
This preliminary process most often consists of some combination of initial due diligence, surveys, and a series of succinct and targeted workshops. This work helps establish a baseline assessment providing insight into what has historically worked well for the existing Board structure and membership, what might contribute to additional growth and strengthening of the Board, and what you will want to prioritize in future Board growth and engagement.
This phase includes:
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Due Diligence. Review of available materials related to current state and status of Board, size, and structure.
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Workshops. A series of simple, engaging, and fun workshops, over phone or videoconference, where we will gain insight, assess existing consensus (or opportunities to develop further consensus), define goals and vision, discuss intended outcomes of our work, and to develop the deliverable of a Board Growth & Development Roadmap and, if time and engagement allows, develop a preliminary Prospect List.
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Surveys. Simple online surveys deployed throughout our engagement to gather information relevant to the process and/or workshop topic. That information will be distilled, aggregated, anonymized, and will inform each subsequent step and applicable workshop(s). Summary survey feedback and takeaways will be provided in written form.
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Strategy. This step follows the initial assessments, surveys, and workshops, and includes a summary overview of personas for potential targeted Board member recruitment, highlighting the key attributes surfaced throughout our work together. This will be complemented by recommendations for Board decision making processes for growth.
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Prospect Identification. With initial survey, workshop, and baseline assessments completed, we will conduct a workshop to “brainstorm big” about prospective Board member attributes and potentially also identities of such prospective members.
PHASE 3 - SUPPORTING IMPLEMENTATION
Following Phase 1 and Phase 2, any additional work may include our team’s continued support of:
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Board Member Recruitment. Assisting your team in developing messaging, outreach, socialization, and recruitment of prospective Board members.
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Board Member Onboarding & Orientation. Assisting your team with new Board member onboarding and orientation and engaging them with Board materials.
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Board Meeting Support. Working with you and your team to develop additional practices around streamlined, effective, and engaging Board meetings, and provide you with the applicable templates and/or on-call support to assist with the process. We can provide you with a consistent template for the agenda that works with any Board, templates for resolutions, unanimous written consent, and meeting minutes, and coach you on how to run an efficient and effective board meeting every time that delights and engages your board members, making their jobs easy, effective, and fun.
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Enhancing Board Policies & Practices. Depending on the existence of and/or progress toward developing Board Policies & Practices as outlined above, we may continue supporting you and your team in the further development and/or implementation of these items and related practices.
PHASE 2 - PRIORITIZING NEXT STEPS
Prospect Identification. Depending on variables related to status of consensus and initial identification of Board prospects, we will continue to work with you and your team to:
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Identify Prospects. Further identify and refine a list of Board prospects across key categories of priorities defined in Phase 1;
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Vet Prospects. If/as desired, using our experienced external vetting partners, we may assist you and your team in vetting identified prospects; and
Recruitment & Onboarding. Outline next steps for (and potentially initiate approach to) recruitment and onboarding of new Board members.
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Solicit interest. Formally solicit a statement of interest from top prospects.
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Conduct interviews. Outline and implement interview process for finalists.
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Onboarding. Implement onboarding processes, including review of applicable board materials.
Board Engagement & Support. Throughout our engagement, we will assess information you provide regarding current Board policies, practices, and operations; and may recommend (and potentially provide) additional tools to enhance such practices and operations.
Such policies, practices, and tools may include one or more of:
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Board Governance Principles;
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Board Code of Conduct,
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Board Annual Review Practices and Processes (including a Board Self-Assessment tool, CEO review support, etc.).
These policies, procedures, and practices are not guaranteed as part of Phase 2. Whether or not they need to/can be provided depends upon considerations including whether such tools already exist, the extent to which consensus is strong at the outset of the project or needs to be developed over time, and general pace and depth of work in Phase 1.