Providing Value

Andrew Kakabadse, Professor of International Management Development in the School of Management at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom, recently conducted a study of over 1200 boards from around the world. Fully 75% of those boards reported not knowing how they contribute value to their organizations. While sad, I am not surprised by this finding. The culture of most boards precludes engagement. And, if there is no engagement how can we expect anyone to have even a sense of belonging, let alone of providing import to the organization?

For instance, when was the last time your board was engaged in a substantive discussion? I don’t mean that the directors were asked to vote on a recommendation or to discuss the merits of the two companies submitting bids to fix the roof. Rather, they were expected to ask “What if…,” to explore working in tandem with a group that has always been seen as the competition or to consider how to turn a risk into a unique opportunity to move the organization forward?

I routinely ask boards with which I’m going to work to share with me their typical agenda. Most follow a format that is strong on reports. How much value can board members bring if all they are doing is listening to reports? What’s worse: reports focus on the past. Nobody can change the past. If you want board members to feel they are bringing value to your organization, you must engage them – their excitement, commitment and unique talents – around issues that they can impact. This requires providing them with the information they need or request, turning them loose to grapple with the issues and supporting their conclusions. If you have grounded your board around your organizational vision and values you have nothing to fear and much to gain.

There’s an old adage that, “If two people in business think alike, one of them is unnecessary.” We need the diversity of thought that our boards bring to the table. Our decisions become better. Best, the process cuts both ways. People who have had the opportunity to offer input feel valued.

But, all of this is for naught if we don’t share with our boards the results of their efforts. Otherwise, for all they know, they wasted their time in merely a mental exercise. If we want our boards to feel valued, we have to demonstrate that their product – their intellectual capital and their efforts – made a difference. And, it doesn’t hurt to thank them for that, either!

Partnership First Steps

Lately, we’ve been focusing on partnerships as a way to increase nonprofit resources. We developed a list of ideas to help the nonprofits we work with to expand their resources for mission. The suggested activities can help you to expand your resources too—and explore potential relationships. They all are geared to be short-term to “see how the relationship works,” and to establish trust. Here is one of them:

*Meet quarterly for one year to brainstorm topics for your monthly newsletter column and other places where you contribute regularly but often feel “stale” and short of ideas.

For a list of the 25 other ideas email me at Info@kedconsult.com. Write “partnership list” on the reference line.

Positive Spin Blinds Group

Amidst the turmoil of a sudden forced resignation, a group lost an opportunity to receive a major grant. The donor asked for a document with a deadline that fell one week after the resignation. When the group subsequently did not receive the grant, they developed this explanation: “The donor did not give us enough time.”

Technically, this was true. More time would have allowed the group to comply. Underneath this positive spin, was the fact that the group, because of the resignation faced a leadership void at a critical hour. The spin blamed the donor. The spin, which over time became the organization’s reality, meant that instead of planning how to restore the donors trust in the organization, the group is blithely plans to apply again to this “capricious” donor.

By all means create a positive spin for the challenges you face, but avoid spinning so much that the dust you generate blinds you to reality and critical action steps.

New Nonprofit Definition

Someone Who Likes to Spread the Joy Around

A person who has grant or other nonprofit money to give and implies they might give it to you (and about five other local organizations.) Instead, they hold on to it.

After the Wedding

They made a gift-- a substantial one. Congratulations. You helped them to meet one of their goals. As a nonprofit leader, it’s huge part of our lives. In your donor’s life however, it may just be a good deed.

Since it is a huge part of our lives, it’s easy to forget that donors for the most part, are rarely “that” into it. They want to help. They may be pleased, happy and proud to help, but it is not their “be and end all.” Avoid setting yourself up for disappointment by expecting passion and commitment with a gift. When you find it, rejoice.

Why The Word Charity Should Makes Me Shudder

Charity is top down, it is “I have the solution and you need my help.”

The late Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat for Humanity, once stated, “What the poor need is not charity, its capital. … We give them an opportunity. That’s the only thing that is given away. They’ve got to make the payments so that money can be used to help somebody else.”

Apply your concept of partnership to more than just your donors; apply it to your customers. Without your customers’ efforts and willingness to work with you, you cannot create outcomes.

Are You Prepared for When Disaster Strikes?

This past week news has centered on little other than the devastating impact of the earthquake in Haiti. The challenges of responding to this crisis are immense. More than one newscaster has claimed the task impossible, despite the outpouring of help from around the world, the tens of millions of dollars in donations and the fact that Haiti has over 10,000 NGOs of its own to mobilize – the highest number of NGOs per capita of anywhere in the world. True, this is an extraordinary situation. But, it should serve as a lesson to all organizations in our sector. We must be prepared for the unexpected, whatever form that might take. After all, experience teaches us it is not a question of “if” something untoward will occur, but “when.”

No area in the world is immune to natural disasters. Therefore, your organization is susceptible. Is your data protected and retrievable even if your computers are smashed, looted or swept out to sea? Do you have a staffing plan where people know who is to report, under what circumstances, and where to report if your physical space can’t be reached, is uninhabitable or otherwise compromised? Do you have a means of checking up on staff who don’t immediately report to be sure that they are okay? What about a plan for providing service when your normal operations are disrupted? How will you access critical supplies? How will you determine which programs have priority if you cannot, for some reason, provide them all? Do you have a process in place for communicating with your clients if basic telecommunications are disrupted? How will you triage their needs? Do you have agreements with other organizations to work together or even take over for you in times like these?

Then there are man-made disasters, which are even more likely to occur. Pick up a newspaper almost any day and there is a story about someone in the public eye who said something politically incorrect when out with “friends” or in front of a live microphone that was assumed to be off. It can happen to your executive administrator or a visible member of your board. What about a trusted staff member or volunteer who absconds with organizational funds? Or, a program that gets bad publicity? Perhaps someone associated with your organization is accused of sexual harassment. Or, your property is burglarized or significantly vandalized. The possibilities are endless. Are you prepared to handle them quickly and intelligently? Have you identified an organizational spokesperson who will serve as the (only) voice of the organization in these circumstances? Do you have a policy for whether you will be proactive or reactive in dealing with the press? A script by which you control the spin? What about procedures for staying in the public’s good graces?

While it is never possible to cover all contingencies, having risk and crisis management plans in place that deal with the most likely will serve you in good stead. Not only will you be able to quickly respond to the situations you’ve previously identified, you will have a plan from which to start – one you can adapt – when faced with the unexpected.

Few people like thinking about worst case scenarios – it’s why so many die without wills, despite the knowledge that we all will die. However, your organization made a commitment to the community when it opened its doors. You cannot afford to be ill prepared to meet that commitment. As such, you need plans that are updated as new situations reveal missing elements. Bring key stakeholders in today and start them brainstorming. Tomorrow may be too late.