In Brief
The Board of this national not-for-profit wanted to deepen their impact building a sustainable future for their organization. We worked with them on several initiatives, focused on strengthening the Board’s effectiveness, including foundational education on leading governance practices, revising their Board manual, providing real-time coaching for the Board Chair, and leading a review of the Board’s approach to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).
Our Engagement
When the Board of a national not-for-profit organization asked us to help them strengthen their effectiveness, we worked with them to increase their knowledge, improve their skills, and align their actions over a series of engagements, continuously building on the progress the Board was making over time.
Through customized educational sessions, we helped the Board establish a common understanding of what leading governance practices actually look like in their context, and understand how to maximize their strategic contributions. Through this process, the Board gained new perspectives and a shared understanding and began to develop new behaviours to approach its work.
When it was time to move that shared understanding into action, we worked with them to update their Board manual, to bring greater clarity around roles and responsibilities and to create a practical framework to guide the work of the Board. Subsequent coaching sessions with the Board Chair provided an opportunity for us to deliver real-time feedback on committee and Board meetings, and constructive recommendations to improve meeting practices and foster dialogue between Directors.
Finally, we helped them advance a key focus area for both the Board and organization: DEI. Building on the educational sessions we had delivered previously, we facilitated conversations about DEI – a challenging subject for many boards – ultimately bringing them together to advance their commitment to DEI and embed those commitments throughout the organization. This began with examining the Board’s own composition and selection processes and has included a multi-year approach that includes guiding principles, key milestones, and a detailed implementation plan to support the Board’s longer-term journey ahead.
The Impact
This committed Board made incredible strides over the course of our engagement, navigating complex issues and building their knowledge, strengthening their dynamics, and increasing their effectiveness in the process. The outcomes of this work – particularly around DEI – will be transformational and help ensure the Board can continue to guide the organization into the future in a sustainable way.
