By George Hofheimer, CAE
Recently CUES and BoardSource conducted an in-depth study on credit union board member satisfaction. One of the key areas of dissatisfaction focused on the board's ability to focus on long-term policy issues in lieu of short-term administrative issues.
I am sure you can think of a few examples of this dynamic at work in your credit union. However, the goal is not to think of the most outrageous instances. The question is how do we change board member behavior so that the focus is on the broader picture and not the narrow frame of today.
One simple way to think long term is to start every board meeting off with a future-focused discussion. Some examples include "what will our membership look like in 2020?" "what skills will our board need in the next 5 years that do not exist today.” Try to limit your discussions to 10-15 minutes. This line of questioning gets the creative juices flowing and helps board members think outside the realm of short-term, administrative issues.
The Carver Policy Governance Model is a broader, more formalized approach. This model helps organizations “separate issues of organizational purpose (Ends) from all other organizational issues (Means), placing primary importance on those Ends. Policy Governance boards demand accomplishment of purpose, and only limit the staff's available means to those which do not violate the board's pre-stated standards of prudence and ethics."
Easy to say, hard to do. A primary architect of this model, Miriam Carver, will be discussing its application at CUES' Director Development Seminar, Sept. 7-9 in San Diego.
George Hofheimer, CAE
CUES' VP/Chief Learning Officer
