The Important Board Chairperson

The board chairperson is the most important person in the organization. Is that true in your organization? Do you treat recruiting the chairperson as important or necessary? Do you have a successor plan for the chairperson?

The board exists to lead the organization. The leadership should come from the wisdom and guidance it provides rather than the commands it issues. The board chairperson selects the agenda in consultation with the administrative head of the organization (principal, executive director, etc.). If the agenda is filled with non-mission related items, petty issues, and budget issues, where is the opportunity for the wisdom and guidance to emerge?

The chairperson should manage the board. Otherwise, the professional leader (principal, executive director, etc.) must manage the board. When the professional leader is managing the board, it creates problems. The professional has less time for the operational oversight. The board engages in more operational oversight and less planning and visioning. It is hard for the board to objectively evaluate the performance of the professional leader and team. With the professional acting as the board leader, it is awkward to do the annual performance review. The board discussions are often less strategic and more operational than is optimal. There is a risk the board will become a rubber stamp rather than a deliberative body. Is it fair to give one more job to the professional?

When the chairperson is managing the board, the board is usually more effective. There is usually a greater emphasis on planning, board structure, membership development, accountability, transparency, and mission.
Of course, all of the preceding depends on the person who is the chairperson. Without an intentional recruiting process based upon the specific needs of the organization at this moment in its evolution, success is more luck than design. When things are going well it is easy to believe one can be less selective.

Are things going well at the moment? Perhaps internally things are okay. Externally, this is a difficult time for our communities. Is the chairperson guiding discussions to ensure that the external problems have minimal affect on the mission and internal performance? What is the chairperson doing to monitor the health of the organization? Does the chairperson know that monitoring health at a time like this is more about predicting trends than looking at past results?

If the organization is under stress is the chairperson right for the job? We often see organizations under stress with a good firefighter as the chairperson. Firefighters are good at putting out fires. They are seldom called upon to keep the neighborhood from declining, preventing new fires, or helping to rebuild a neighborhood.
In times of stress, it is best to have a community organizer or turnaround specialist as the chairperson.
Community organizers are good at gathering support, motivating people, and changing the status quo.

Turnaround specialists have a broad knowledge, know how to plug leaks and trim excesses as well as set new direction. Both are high-energy individuals with a very strong goal orientation. Both are hard to find but worth the search when the need arises. Do you know which you need? Both need to be replaced as soon as the turnaround has self-sustaining momentum.

Next Step:

Determine where the organization is in its life cycle, what its immediate leadership needs are, and what its long-term goals areCreate formal selection criteria for the chairperson
Intentionally recruit to match the criteria and be prepared to invest in the chairperson (training, education, mentoring, etc.) to ensure his or her success
Create a successor plan, the chairperson is too important to leave the successor to chance

There should be two successors waiting. One who will be a great leader if things continue to go well. The other will be a great leader if the organization is under stress when the opening occurs. The depth of skills in the potential successors will add perspective to the board deliberations and increase the quality of the decision-making.

The chairperson is a very special individual and should be carefully selected based upon the immediate and long-term needs of the organization as well as where the organization is in its life-cycle. The right chairperson is able to foster growth regardless of the internal or external conditions because he or she was carefully chosen. The converse is also true. If growth is elusive, it may be appropriate to ask if the right person is the chairperson. If you believe that you have the right chairperson but still find growth elusive, it is time to bring in outside help.