ARE YOU ON BOARD?

Advice for Board Members
and Agency Executives

Dr. Ted Flickinger IAPD Executive Director At all times a board member must represent the best interests of everyone in the community.

Board Governance

It is the board's responsibility to carry out the district's mission statement, achieve long-term goals, and adopt a governance policy that includes the following points.

• The primary interest of the board should be long range planning and evaluating whether objectives are being achieved.

• The board and executive responsibilities should be identified with distinctions for who does what.

• The board speaks with one voice.

• The board recognizes the executives responsibility for delegation and decisions about day-to-day operations.

• At least annually, the board evaluates itself and the executive.

• All new board members must go through an orientation and training program prior to attending their first board meeting. Training includes history of the agency, board policies, personnel policies, budget, minutes, strategic plan, board relationships with one another and the executive, tour of area and facilities, conflict of interest, legal issues and general boardmanship.

Ways To Keep Meetings Orderly

• Start on time.

• Follow parliamentary procedures.

• Control digressions from the meeting. (Stick to the agenda.)

• Make a motion to add non-agenda items to the next meetings agenda. Only emergencies should be added.

• Don't discuss day-to-day management issues; only policy matters come to the board's attention.

• Hold questions until speakers are finished and limit speaker time periods for the board and guests.

• Have executive and committee recommendations made in advance on critical issues. Include rationale and supporting information.

• Orient new board members on how board meetings are conducted.

Board Member Obligation

At all times a board member must represent the best interests of everyone in the community. Boards are confronted with all kinds of issues today. Sometimes the resolution of a problem goes against a board member's moral or religious beliefs. Personal beliefs and community standards are important and it is difficult to make decisions when an issue gets a lot of attention.

When in this situation, the board and executive should:

• Get an opinion from legal counsel;

• Weigh personal beliefs against legal realities;

• Not succumb to making an emotional decision without the facts;

• Always remember that you are sworn to act in the best interest of everyone in the community regardless of race, creed or religion;

• Be aware that whatever decisions are made by the board, some citizens won't be happy.

Doing what is best for the community, what is right and what is legal supersedes feelings or perceived "community standards."

Getting Through a Crisis

Has your board and executive prepared for a crisis? It should be clear that the executive who is well trained in this area, should manage a crisis. If this person is not trained or doesn't prefer this role, someone on staffer a board member should be trained to be the spokesperson. The agency cant have several people talking to the media.

Prior to a crisis, the executive should have developed a positive relationship with the media. During a crisis is not a good time to attempt to develop a relationship with the media. If they know you and you have built credibility, they might be inclined to give a full disclosure of the situation and trust your factual information.

So, remember these rules for dealing with the media.

• Be prepared to answer three likely questions:

What happened? Why? What are you doing about it?

• Be cooperative.

• Be accessible.

• Be direct.

• Be fair.

• Be positive. State your message positively and get your story out.

6 / Illinois Parks and Recreation

ADVICE FOR BOARD MEMBERS AND AGENCY EXECUTIVES

Advice for Committees

Committees are extremely important to the board. Their effecriveness lets the board stay focused on long-range planning but, just as important, make intelligent decisions about problems and issues. How do committees become results-oriented?

• They need clearly defined purpose and goals.

• Committee meetings need agendas.

• A committee report that requires full board action should be mailed prior to the meeting.

Good Communication Goes a Long Way

Q What is the number one reason executives are fired?

A: Failure to communicate with their board. More specifically, failure to communicate directions the board wants to take and failure to communicate policies that dictate job responsibilities.

Why the Board Should Not Include Staff in the Evaluation of the Executive

• It's the board's job to hire and evaluate the executive. Staff do not often evaluate their boss objectively. Rather, they evaluate from their point of view, reflecting personal bias and subjective views. Besides, it's usually clear whether an executive has rapport with staff, good communications and respect. If board members want proof of staff satisfaction the executive can discuss contentment, turnover rates, grievances and long-term employment.

• The board should evaluate the executive with heavy emphasis on whether or not the executive achieved specific goals (not on how they were achieved or on personalities).

• If staff participate in the executives evaluation it not only breaks the chain of command but opens the door for staff to go to the board or individual members on their grievances. This also compromises the role of the board (policy making) and the role of the executive (policy implementation or day-to-day management).

Public Relations Services for Board Members

Boards should actively seek support for the park district, forest preserve or recreation agency. You are not a specialist in public relations and you don't have to be.

Some board members who enjoy public speaking represent the board and agency at various civic groups and luncheons. Others provide the executive with names of contacts to whom he/she can give presentations. This is called "friend-raising."

The president of the board, with advice from the executive, can assign board members to community involvement based on their familiarity and comfort level. Other board members perhaps could write favorable editorials or articles for magazines or be interviewed.

If board members don't enjoy speaking, I would recommend they accompany the executive. Their presence shows board support and their desire to relate to fellow citizens.

Community relations should be listed as a board responsibility in the board member job description.

Strategies to Keep Board Members from Meddling with Staff

• During orientation and training of new board members, have them sign a board Code of Ethics that identifies not directing or meddling with individual staff members (as well as the executive) unless acting on or delegated by the full board.

• Identify in the board policy manual that all board questions or requests regarding staff should be made to the executive. The executive will know the staff member's workload. When a staff member is asked by a board member to do something, it places this person in a very uncomfortable position to choose between helping the board member or doing his/her regular duties. It also breaks the chain of command which can affect the morale and team work of the staff/executive relationships.

Ask Board Members Why They Serve

Want to hear some uplifting stories? Ask board members to state their "best" relationships with the park district, forest preserve or recreation agency. What have they gained from volunteering as a board member?

The answers might give the executive more insight about the board members. Find out what is good about serving on the board and being associated with the agency. Use a flip chart to write down the board members' comments about their positive experiences.

Community relations should be listed as a board responsibility in the board member job description.

Why do you serve on the board? Tell us your story. Why do you volunteer your time to be a board member for your local park district or forest preserve? IAPD might use your story in a video on boardmanship that is currently in development. Contact Ted Flickinger at IAPD, 211 E. Monroe Street, Springfield, IL 62701-1186, tflickinger@eosinc.com.

September/October 1999/ 7