The Advisory Board Director Relationship

1
The Advisory Board -Director Relationship

• Clark Swanson
• President, OrangeBoy, Inc.

2
A Moment

• Why do busy people saddle themselves with great
  responsibility for no monetary gain or
  appreciable benefit?
• The effectiveness of any given advisory board
  depends to the greatest extent on the
  effectiveness of the board/director relationship.
  

3
Effectiveness Defined

• What constitutes an effective relationship?
• The cornerstone A shared vision
• This manifests itself several ways
• A sense of achievement
• Board sets sells the agenda

4
Effectiveness Defined

• Board marshals community resources
• Active participation
• Board/Director challenge the other
• A committed, open relationship
• A commitment to change
• No surprises

5
The building blocks

• It starts with trust -- the essential ingredient
• Practice Effective board development
• Get control of the nominating committee!
• Develop job descriptions
• Create an on-going process of planning and
  evaluation

6
The Building Blocks

• Identify and develop the wheel horse
• Let no director stand alone -- youre a team,
  remember
• Term limits

7
The Road Blocks

• No clear and compelling cause exists
• Urgency
• Importance
• Relevance
• Vision confusion

8
The Road Blocks

• Poor leadership
• Board level
• Staff level
• Whimsy over reason
• Rogue board/staff members

9
In Conclusion

• Vision
• Leadership
• Commitment
• Change