Issue No. 162

September 2024

September means we are heading into the "fall back" time of year, but September is also the "step up" time of year. New board and committee appointments, new classes to take, new people to meet -- stepping up to something new or different. The calendar tells us we are winding down for winter, but our personal schedules have us ramping up. Every year this duality takes me awhile to get used. You too? Be gentle with yourself.

August saw me pretty much out of board-mode and into artist mode. A new play, new roles, new audiences, new experiences. These all made for a full (and mostly wonderful!) month. I, Diana hit many of the right notes for audiences and critics alike, and also taught people that it is possible to survive a narcissist (and maybe have a few laughs, too). It was nice to see so many board members at the Fringe relaxing instead of "boarding." Thank you all (board, non-board, board-adjacent) for attending!

My brother Rob came from Ontario for a holiday and to help me with Fringe. He was a mainstay for our show, helping out where needed. It was our first Fringe show without Brian, and the actors and I had come to rely on Brian's presence over the years -- He was always there for us. Rob stepped up and, while we all miss Brian, Rob always had our backs and gave us just what we needed. Thank you, brother!

Of course, we also found some time to goof off while he was here. Our adventures included brewery visits, an outdoor wrestling match/beach party, green onion cakes, a family brunch, ZooBrew, cemeteries, schnitzel, and spending our mom's last $50 betting on the Canadian Derby (we won it back). We've always known how to back a ton into our limited time together.

All that to say...those webinars, articles, and tidy-up-the office things I mentioned in July? They did NOT happen in August. I hope you had better luck! My to-do pile remains as daunting as it did before I declared it to be my summer project.

The move of my friend to different seniors housing and care facility pretty much had to be done in absentia. Because I needed to be in Ottawa, I had to source, hire, and trust others with tasks I would have preferred to do myself. Guess what? It worked! I learned quite a bit about myself during this process and was reminded that paying people to do things you think you should do yourself isn't always a bad thing. They were competent and kind, and (I guarantee) better at it than I was. Go figure! The success of the project (in this case, the move and set up of a friend) was also their success. Such a relief!

While in Ottawa I received a 25 year plaque from the Canadian Institute of Plumbing and Heating. I was surprised (I'd lost track) and am honoured to keep working with this national industry association and the many good people in it.

In August I met with three people about funerals, and presided over one funeral. It puts my mind back to grief and its impact on us -- missing loved ones, sometimes still getting angry that they're not here, and wondering about the "what ifs." It's all part of the ride, but you've got to (seriously got to) take the ride. Looks like I am back on the ride. Sigh.

August closed out with the Pink concert (and Sheryl Crow and The Script and DJ Kid CutUp) at Commonwealth Stadium. It was a warm evening and I fared much better than I did at David Bowie in 1983. Score one for maturity!

Whether you're falling back or stepping up (or both), I hope September brings you many gifts.

/lmwe

"September skies are a reminder that every day

is a fresh start filled with opportunities."

-- Unknown

WHAT'S ON YOUR BOARD'S MIND?

As I mentioned, I didn't get all my summer reading done and so I don't have a theme to share with you today. However, I do have a handful of items that have been keeping my board brain busy this summer.

Executive Succession: Why is the process of finding and contracting the successor of an Executive Director (planned departure) so difficult, even with an excellent Executive Succession policy? My theory is that very few board members (except perhaps those on the boards of HR associations) have limited HR experience, particularly at the C-suite level. When that is the situation, it's best to bring in outside help such as an executive recruitment firm. But what if your association can't afford that? Then you need to pull in volunteers from outside the organization with skills that will round out the skills of those on your search committee or board. Then what happens when you're ready to make an offer? Well, this is when you need to bring in a volunteer with contracting and employment law experience. But what if your association can't afford that? Where do we find all these experts-for-free? I know you see the dilemma. Where the accountability rests is unclear, the timelines stretch out, and the departing Executive loses patience (or worse). If you are facing Executive Succession and have no or little money, I implore you to find a way to hire an external company to get the project across the goal line. A new Executive Director is one of the top two important decisions a board needs to make. Spend money there. All of it, if you must. I'm dying to know how my readers have handled this situation (I know you're out there).

Extending Board Terms: I have had terrific influence and luck convincing organizations that their boards need term limits. In fact, very few bylaws are without this best practice. Unfortunately, boards are starting to approach me about poor member engagement and how that impacts board succession. Specifically, they say that with no new people willing to go on the board, they want to amend the bylaws to keep extending director and officer terms. I say DON'T FALL FOR IT! New ideas are needed. Trying something innovative, like a 6-month appointment, or just until the next AGM. But do whatever you need to add people and not extend the others. In the association sector, we have a pretty narrow view of what engagement looks like, so let's make it look differently. Let me know what you come up with!

Board Evaluation: When is a board evaluation not a board evaluation? Turns out, almost every time. They surveys we use for boards (and also members) are generally designed to give us "opinions" but not data. We feel pretty smug that we get the board to do the questionnarie every year and get 100% participation but there is an excellent chance we have not asked the right questions. Therefore, we won't get meaningful information. Sure, sometimes opinions are useful, but generally not (at least from a governance perspective). This is definitely going to need me to do a deeper dive in 2024/2025.

Strategic Planning: During the pandemic, many organizations just kicked the ball further down the field and made their 3-year plan a 5-year (now, 6, 7, or 8-year) plan. They upshot is this: even if the values, vision, and mission didn't change much (are we sure?), something big definitely changed. This far along, do we still have an actual strategic plan or just a list of tasks? I know what I'm seeing. What are you seeing?

Want to have a chat about these or any other board things? I intend to set up a few appointments each month where you can join me and others to pick my brain. The finer technical/technological details are being worked out, but in the meantime don't forget I'm here if you want to bounce something off my board-brain.

"The needs of an evolving company are always changing. Board directors

should change with the company’s needs."

-- Matthew Scott

Some Quotes I Like

# Some Things I Like (by-the-numbers) #

Linda Wood Edwards

P.O. Box 11021, Station Main

Edmonton, Alberta T5J 3K3

Linda@lue42.com

780-918-4200