Strengthening the CEO and Board Partnership
In order for any nonprofit organization to be successful, there must be a great partnership between the CEO and the board. The ability to collaborate as partners will ultimately determine the organization’s effectiveness and success.
One of the characteristics of a highly successful nonprofit organization is the level of engagement between the board and the CEO. There needs to be a constant open and honest dialogue about the key issues facing the organization and how best to utilize the talents, experience, and knowledge of each respective board member. It is also extremely important for every board member to feel that their voices are heard, that their actions matter, and that their ideas are encouraged for open discussion.
DCM recommends using the “50% rule” at board meetings to encourage real engagement at board meetings. In addition to the necessary reports and updates, add to the agenda a question designed to engaged each board member in a discussion related to achieving your organization’s vision. For example, “what is the value our organization provides to the community we serve.”
It is the responsibility of both the board chair and the CEO to make sure each board member is an engaged and active participant. DCM will work with the CEO and board leadership to ensure that the board and executive leadership are fully aligned to achieve your organization’s strategic goals.
“Dennis worked with us on how to strengthen our CEO and board partnership to create a more dynamic and high performing nonprofit board. Everyone enjoyed the process of learning the key components of strengthening our “partnership” including how to recruit new board members based on competencies and personal characteristics rather than just skill needs and how to make our board meetings more engaging for everyone.”
Dr. Laura HeintzCEO of Stanford Sierra Youth & Families
"Dennis Miller provided great insight into building a strong and effective CEO and board partnership for Vision Loss Alliance. He has the ability to see opportunities and areas for growth with organizations both big and small, and to deliver the information in a straightforward yet thought provoking manner. Both the executive leadership team and board thoroughly enjoyed the process as well as the output of our time with Dennis and look forward to working with him again in the future."
Kris MarinoExecutive Director, Vision Loss Alliance