Extraordinary Board Leadership: The Keys to High-Impact Governing Book

Foreword ix

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Chapter 1 The High-Impact Governing Model 1

Governing a High-Stakes "Business" 1

A Wild and Wonderful Universe of Boards 2

Governing Work in a Nutshell 4

The Nuts and Bolts of Governing 5

High-Impact Governing Boards 6

Falling Short of the Promise 6

A Traditionally Neglected Subject 10

Inheritance and the Passive-Reactive Model 10

The Damage Control Bias 12

Nongoverning Volunteering 12

The Keys to High-Impact Governing 14

Transforming Your Board into a Higher-Impact Governing Body 14

Fundamental Governing Architecture 15

Board Governing Mission 16

Board Development Vehicles 17

Continuous Governing Improvement via Standing Committees 18

Chapter 2 The Board-Savvy CEO 21

Leader of the Strategic Governing Team 21

You Need a Board-Savvy Team Captain 22

The Board Must Choose Well 22

Bringing the Right Attitude 23

Making Governing a Top CEO Priority 24

Chief Board Developer 26

Building Board Commitment to Development 27

Creating Board Development Champions 29

The Psychological and Emotional Dimension 31

Adding Spice to the Governing Stew 33

Becoming Top-Notch Facilitators 33

Chapter 3 Board Standing Committees and Other Structural Questions 35

Structure at a Glance 35

The Value of Well-Designed Standing Committees 36

Beware of Dysfunctional Silo Committees 37

A Model Committee Structure 40

More on the Governance (Board Operations) Committee 44

Committees as Continuous Governing Improvement Vehicles 45

Making Committees Function as Powerful Governing Engines 48

Dealing with More Than One Board 57

Employing Nongoverning Volunteer Bodies 59

The Matter of Board Size59

Board Member Terms and Frequency of Meetings 61

A Word on Technology 63

Chapter 4 Board Self-Management 65

Joint Accountability 65

People: The Most Precious Asset in Governing 66

The Good News 67

But on the Flip Side 68

Some Common Pathological Symptoms 70

The High-Impact Governing Solution 71

Going for the Top: The Hunt for CEOs 77

Developing the Profile of Attributes and Qualifications 78

Significant Issues, Variations, and Potential Traps 79

Identifying the Targets 85

Fashioning and Executing a Strategy 86

The Board Member Skills Development Program 86

A Closing Word on the CEO Role 92

Board Performance Management 93

Developing the Performance Targets 94

Assessing Performance and Taking Action 96

Chapter 5 Involving Your Board in Leading Change 97

At the Pinnacle of High-Impact Governing 97

The Stakes Demand Board Attention 98

A Perfect Match 99

And the Right Time 99

Coming Attractions 100

Bye-Bye Tractor Plans! 101

Real Security in a Tough World: The Strategic Change Portfolio Approach in a Nutshell 103

Formidable Barriers 107

Board Involvement in the Portfolio Process 108

The Retreat as an Involvement Tool 111

The Strategic Framework: Values and Vision 114

Your Core Values Statement 114

That Vision Thing 116

A Word on that Mission Thing 117

Other Key Board Involvement Points 118

Chapter 6 Involving Your Board in Operational Planning and External Relations 123

Overview 123

Operational Planning in Theory 125

The Budget Tail Wagging the Planning Dog 125

Rising Above-and Directing-the Detail 128

Limits to Board Involvement 131

The Retreat as an Operational Planning Tool 131

The Prebudget Operational Planning Work Session 132

Performance Objectives and Targets 134

Moving Toward Budget Adoption 138

Passing the Baton to Performance Oversight and Monitoring 139

Lack of Information is Not the Real Problem 140

Designing Committee Role and Process 141

Keeping Your Collective Feet on the Ground 142

Starting with the Basics 143

Going Beyond the Basics 145

The External Relations Imperative 146

The Case for Hands-On Board Involvement 147

A Brief Note on Fund Raising 156

Chapter 7 Managing the Board-CEO Partnership 159

A Precious, Codependent Bond 159

But an Oh-So-Fragile Bond 160

The High Cost of a Broken Bond 162

The Keys to Maintaining a Healthy Board-CEO Partnership 163

Additional Resources 179

Index 181