by Paula MacLean | Board and Executive Directors
Although the literature in this area is extensive, in essence there are three different types of boards or models of governance. They are:
- An Operational (or Administrative) Board
- A Policy-Governance (or Carver) Board
- A Policy Board
Operational boards are useful when:
- The organization is grassroots and has few or no employees.
- The organization is experiencing a major crisis and the board must step in to manage the organization until it is stabilized.
- The organization is newly formed and not yet ready or able to hire people to operate services or programs.
The increasing sophistication of non-profit organizations has made operational boards less common. As a result (and unfortunately) very little information exists on how to be an effective board of this type. It is often assumed that an operational board will be transitional – meaning it will become a policy board once the foundation work of the new organization is complete. In fact, many smaller non-profits choose to have operational boards for many years. The board and a core group of service volunteers do all the work with little or no need for paid employees. An excellent web radio link (not associated with the author of this ezine article) for grassroots non-profits is provided in the resource section below.
Policy-Governance or Carver boards are usually used by larger organizations that offer high-level professionally delivered services. This type of board:
- Is the least involved in operations of the three types of boards.
- Focuses on creating end statements (the results or outcomes to be achieved), rather than on means or how or what will be done to achieve the outcomes.
- Focuses exclusively on creating and monitoring policies that require and limit the executive director to do or not do certain things. Given these limits, the executive director and staff may manage the organization as they deem appropriate and necessary.
This model is intended to simplify the board-staff roles and relationships. In practice, most boards and senior managers find the model complex to implement in the early stages. The “Carver Model” is very well regarded by some organizations that use it, while others have modified the strict expectations of the model and found this works better for them. Still others have attempted a policy governance approach and abandoned it. Anecdotally, if this model is to be effective, it would appear that a certain sophistication and perseverance is necessary—both by the board and by the senior manager.
A policy board is by far the most common model of governance among non-profits today. A policy board:
- Delegates (in writing) responsibility for day-to-day managing and operating of the organization.
- Creates, reviews and then approves governance policies (how will the board conduct its own work and business of the board) and framework policies such as vision, mission, purpose and core values).
- Defines how the executive director will be held accountable for use of financial resources,
program/service outcomes, and human resource practices.
- Supports the executive director and appraises his/her performance annually.
- Ensures the organization has the financial resources necessary to fulfill its mission and mandate.
It is important for your board to declare itself to be one of the three types of boards. The activities of the board, directors’ job descriptions and relationships with the executive director all hinge on the governance model the board chooses.
Paula J. MacLean is the best-selling author of six books for nonprofit leaders. She is an educator and coach for Canadian nonprofit managers, ED/CEOs and boards of directors.
by Paula MacLean | Board and Executive Directors
I am a Baby Boomer – born between 1945 and 1964. When I was growing up, there were lots and lots of us. This did not seem at all problematic. The sandbox (and swing-sets and teeter-totters and merry-go-rounds) were crowded with kids. We learned to wait our turn, and we learned that we sometimes needed to compete for the things we wanted. We learned that drive, ambition, and hard work were necessary to succeed. We learned to value lifelong learning and to expect a few “hard lessons” along the way.
In the workplace, Baby Boomers developed a love for structured systems, consistency, prescribed procedures, and measurable outcomes. Baby Boomer leaders were instrumental in the creation of job descriptions, quality assurance programs, business plans, multi-layered organizational charts, detailed policy manuals, finely tuned financial systems, management-by-objectives, performance appraisals, and strategic plans. Skipping any of these essential components of organizational life was like inviting deliberate failure. Even management guru Peter Drucker was on Boomers’ side, saying, “That which gets measured gets done.”
Many Generation Xs (born between 1965 and 1980, a generation younger than Baby Boomers) think it’s about time that things begin to change. Some of the old rules no longer seem to be a good fit. Some hope that Boomers’ days of “ruling the world” are numbered!
Traditionalists (born between 1920 and 1945 – a generation older than Boomers) have learned tolerance. They laugh because they are happy to let Boomers do as they please. Traditionalists know that if they don’t like Boomers’ rules, they can find a different employer.
And Generation Ys (born between 1981 and 2000) have just entered onto the employment scene and are looking for mentoring and effective role models. Some see Boomers as over-worked, over-controlling, and structure- obsessed – not the role models they are looking for!
In the not too distant future, the long-held “chain of command” will give way to a “change of command.” As of this writing, the youngest Boomers are in their mid-forties. Twenty years from now, few Boomers will still be working. There is evidence that this generation is increasingly valuing work-life balance. Retirement, semi-retirement, or major career changes are highly likely for many Boomers over the next few years.
Who, then, will lead our organizations in the decades ahead? What values will they bring to the workplace? What will change and what will remain the same? What will the “new rules” be? What adjustments will we need to make as the new rules take hold and reshape our workplaces?
New Rule #1: Create flexibility.
Although Gen X and Gen Y are leading the flexibility movement, Baby Boomers and Traditionalists tell us that they need flexibility too, but for different reasons. A Gen X mother of two who is employed full-time needs flexible scheduling, some give and take about starting time in her work day, and flexible personal leave to accommodate children’s illnesses, school events, and volunteer commitments. A 60-year-old Baby Boomer employee may need flexible scheduling to allow for winter travel and time with grandchildren! Gen Ys want flexibility to pursue educational, personal, and recreational interests. Traditionalists and Gen Ys, who (generationally speaking) share a grandparent-grandchild relationship, often have surprisingly similar needs and interests.
New Rule #2: Support work-life balance.
Fifty (50) percent of Gen Xs were raised in single-parent families. Not surprisingly, Gen Xs say they place a high value on family life and personal balance. Gen Ys want work-life balance, too. They love to play, and play costs money. For this generation, work brings money to buy stuff and go places! Most Boomers have had a lifetime of commitment to hard work and long hours. In increasing numbers they are asking “Is that all there is?” Sabbaticals, reduced hours on the job, partial retirement and major career change are all examples of Boomers’ life-balancing strategies. Employers must not only say they value employees’ work-life balance, they must also walk their talk with policies and practices offering a range of options to encourage balance for all employees.
New Rule #3: Improve employee retention.
Well-lead organizations embrace practices that encourage employees to stay with the organization. Retention has a positive impact on customer service, morale, product quality and on the bottom line. It costs far less to retain a current employee than it does to hire and train a new one.
Conducting annual staff satisfaction surveys and analyzing the data by generational cohorts will help your organization understand and deliver what employees need to stay. The factors that influence retention are complex. Rewards and recognition programs are part of the picture, however, effective management practices are generally more effective for influencing retention than are rewards.
New Rule #4: Create cross-generational recruitment strategies.
Each generation is attracted to different qualities in an employer. Recruitment practices must reflect these preferences. Advertisements run in the local paper are not likely to attract Gen Xs or Ys, who are much more likely to search the Internet, use social networking sites or consult their friends for job leads. Asking younger generations to send resumes by mail communicates that you are an “old school” employer. Phrases in advertisements such as “Only successful applicants will be contacted” and “No telephone inquiries please” are depersonalizing and likely to drive candidates to other employers. A long list of applicant “musts” without any employer “give back” tells potential applicants that the employer doesn’t understand younger employees’ expectations of partnership between the employer and employees.
New Rule #5: Provide coaching, mentoring, and career planning.
Learning and career growth are especially important for Gen Ys and Gen Xs. However, many Boomers and Traditionalists value lifelong learning too. Career change is increasingly common among older employees who, at age 55+, want jobs that are rewarding in ways that are not just monetary. There are substantial generational differences regarding the importance of promotions and upward career paths. Traditionalists and Boomers generally value promotions and advancement less than Gen Ys and Gen Xs. Gen Ys and some Gen Xs are as keen as Boomers used to be regarding career advancement. Organizations that hope to attract and keep these generations must make systematic coaching, mentoring, and career planning programs available to any employee of any generation.
New Rule #6: Invest in supervisors and insist on supervision.
Anyone who supervises others must be skilled in managing both things (tasks, projects, problems) and people. Most people in supervisory or managerial roles were first trained in another skill. For example, all school principals were teachers first. Supervising people often requires skills that differ significantly from a supervisor’s first area of expertise. Employers cannot parachute a loyal, hard-working employee from the line into a management position and expect him or her to instantly know how to supervise effectively. Employers must invest in training and coaching supervisors and give them the support they need to do their jobs.
New Rule #7: Manage change effectively.
Change is ubiquitous within organizations. Effective change management is essential for employee recruitment and retention. Change management includes enabling people affected by change (including clients or customers and employees at all levels) to make the transition from what was to what will be. Each generation (and each individual within them) will have different reactions to change that must be anticipated and accommodated by employers.
Learn more about working in a generationally diverse workplace with my book 7 New Rules for the Sandbox. Check it out here: https://learningforleaders.ca/shop/
Paula J. MacLean is the best-selling author of six books for nonprofit leaders. She is an educator and coach for Canadian nonprofit managers, ED/CEOs and boards of directors. Visit learningforleaders.ca for information on online video training (including two free courses), to sign-up for blog posts and for information about books and ebooks.
by Paula MacLean | Board and Executive Directors
Disciplinary action or “progressive discipline” is used to assist employees to improve sub-standard job performance. Performance issues addressed by this process are more serious than those addressed using constructive critical feedback. The first step in progressive discipline is called a Verbal Warning.
Disciplinary action is used when an employee:
- makes a serious mistake OR
- fails to respond to constructive critical feedback given one or more times.
Prior to using disciplinary action, supervisors and managers must consult, understand and comply with:
- their organization’s policy and procedures
- requirements in collective agreements (in workplaces with unionized employees)
- employment standards or labour regulations in their area.
Follow these steps when giving a verbal warning.
First, identify the performance problem. Ensure the problem is either ongoing or serious enough to require a verbal warning. Constructive critical feedback should be used at least once prior to verbal warning for less serious performance concerns.
- Gather factual information regarding the ongoing issue or the incident. Be quick but thorough – delays in giving the warning will reduce its effectiveness.
- Document the information in writing. Be specific with dates and times when possible
- Schedule a meeting with the employee during their normal working hours.
- Ask another supervisor or manager to attend the meeting as a note-taker and witness. Union agreements may require attendance by a union representative at formal disciplinary meetings. Your meeting should be held within three business days and not later than five business days from the date you became aware of the issue.
- Meet with the employee in a private location away from the eyes and ears of co-workers, customers or the public.
- Factually describe (who, what, where, when) the performance issue or the incident. Never tell an employee that they have a poor or bad “attitude”. If you use these words, the employee will likely respond with “What do you mean, bad attitude?” Stick with one or two concrete examples of where their conduct, behaviour or job performance is not acceptable. Be firm, clear and specific.
- Always use the phrase “This is a verbal warning” and use it only once. This distinguishes the current warning from other verbal feedback and from a written warning which is the next step in the progressive disciplinary process.
- Keep the tone of the interview calm, professional and non-judgmental. Do not raise your voice and resist the temptation to argue or debate. Avoid using emotionally charged words (e.g., incompetent, untrustworthy, disloyal, just to name a few) or generalizations (you always or you never).
- Describe the corrective action required; make your comments specific and instructive
- Clarify the performance standards that must be met – make sure you indicate that performance improvements must be “immediate” and “ongoing”. This helps prevent employees who tend to yo-yo between improving their performance for a short while and allowing things to slip again.
- If the employee lacks the skill to do their job, identify training or support required and set a schedule for the training to occur.
- Invite the employee to ask questions and clarify your expectations. If it feels like the interview is becoming an argument or debate, restate the expectations one more time and then end the interview politely and professionally.
- Following the interview ensure that the minutes or notes are typed and place them on the employee’s personnel file.
Notes taken during disciplinary action may be considered to be legal documents. This documentation also may be used in the future as part of formal proceedings (e.g., if a written warning is required, if an employee grieves the warning or during wrongful dismissal lawsuit brought by the employee against his/her former employer). It is important that notes be professional, complete, accurate, typed and securely stored either in electronic form or as a hard copy.
Employer policy may require employees to sign the notes taken during disciplinary interviews. Employees will often refuse because they believe their signature indicates agreement or consent, resulting in an impasse. It is not really necessary to have the employee sign the notes at all. However, if policy requires it and if the employee refuses to sign, the supervisor or manager should write: “Presented to employee for signature. Employee declined to do so.” Then date and sign the notes and place them in the employee’s personnel file.
Verbal warnings are not appropriate when the employee’s performance problem is very serious (e.g., health or safety of others has been jeopardized, or unethical/illegal activity has occurred). In very serious situations, a written warning or even dismissal may be warranted. In a small number of cases the employee is dismissed with “just cause”. Supervisors and managers MUST consult more senior management and a lawyer before dismissing any employee regardless of the circumstances.
Paula J. MacLean is the best-selling author of six books for nonprofit leaders. She is an educator and coach for Canadian nonprofit managers, ED/CEOs and boards of directors. Visit learningforleaders.ca for information on online video training (including two free courses), to sign-up for blog posts and for information about books and ebooks.
by Paula MacLean | Board and Executive Directors
There are two types of performance issues and also two reasons that an employee may not perform according to an employer’s standards or expectations.
When an employee does not perform one or more specific job duties to the standards of quality and/or efficiency expected by the employer, this is determined to be a performance issue. Performance problems are related to job duties and the tasks required of the employee while at work.
When an employee conducts him/herself in a manner that is inappropriate, unprofessional, or unethical, this a behaviour or conduct issue. Both performance and conduct or behavioural issues require intervention. A supervisor or manager must respond differently to each type of issue.
Bob works for a fast food restaurant. He always arrives at work a few minutes early, is pleasant with his supervisor, gets along with his co-workers and treats customers very well. However, Bob consistently forgets the script he must use when serving a customer. The script includes several “up-sell” points intended to encourage people to buy more or to increase the size of their order. Bob’s supervisor Mac, has given Bob feedback three times and has coached Bob by standing beside him while he is serving customers. Bob does fine while being coached, however as soon as he is on his own, he fails to follow the customer service script.
Does Bob have a performance problem or is this a conduct or behaviour issue? We don’t really have enough information yet to answer this question.
Reasons for Performance and Conduct/Behavior Issues
An employee may demonstrate performance issues for one of two reasons. First, the employee may lack the skill, training or experience to perform some part of the job properly. Alternatively, they may have the skill or experience required, but may not be motivated or confident enough to do some aspect of the job.
When an employee lacks skill or experience, the supervisor or manager should train, coach, and guide the employee toward better performance. Training may be on-the-job, through formal education or through employer-sponsored workshops and courses.
When an employee lacks motivation, supervisors and managers must first determine the reasons for the low motivation. These reasons can be organizational or personal in nature. Employees are responsible for maintaining their own motivation. However, supervisors’ and managers’ behaviour, physical working conditions and co-worker attitudes can all directly impact on employees motivation. An employee may have the skill to do a job but may perform below acceptable levels because they lack confidence.
The supervisor must spend time determining how best to support, coach or mentor the employee to improve their performance. This can be a short-term or a long-term process depending on the nature of the work, the personality of the employee and the relationship that they have with the supervisor. Age, gender, level of education, culture and language, and personal history all play a role when deciding how best to approach issues of employee confidence.
Mac decides to meet privately with Bob to dig a little deeper into the problem. Bob says that he feels the customer script is unnecessary and “kind of stupid”. He says he prefers to talk to customers without using the script. Mac points out that without the script, Bob “forgets” to up-sell the customer and often forgets to say “Thank you and come again.” Bob says that he always tries to up-sell and that he always says thanks.
Now reconsider, does Bob have a performance problem or a conduct or behaviour issue? We now know that this is a very likely a conduct/behaviour issue. Bob is capable of doing the job properly and does fine while his supervisor is standing beside him. Bob is choosing not to do the job according to the standards required of all employees. Knowing this, more training is not the answer. Mac has given Bob feedback three times already, so more feedback is also not likely going to be successful. Using a verbal warning (the first step of formal progressive discipline) is best next intervention. Bob needs to get the message clearly that he must meet the employer’s expectations and use the customer service script immediately and for the long term.
by Paula MacLean | Board and Executive Directors
The Internet was alive this week with another round of stories about Generation Y and the struggle many appear to be having to make their way in the adult world of work and life.
Gen Ys were born between 1986 and 2000, making the oldest 26 years of age while the youngest are still in grade school. As the best educated generation, they are also burdened by record student debt, struggling to find permanent jobs and therefore reportedly likely to be living at home for years to come.
Employers complain about Gen Y’s poor work ethic, obsession with technology, inattentiveness to detail and lack of concern with authority or rules. Managers report feeling lost on how to motivate younger employees and how to get employees from older generations to work with them.
Recent research by best-selling author Paula J. MacLean provides insights and strategies on how to work with this puzzling generation. Her research shows that Gen Ys regard themselves as having a high work ethic, a perception that older co-workers do not share.
Connecting to Gen Ys intrinsic source of motivation is not as difficult as you might imagine. Many from this generation work best in groups. This should be no surprise, they grew up attending play school, preschool, kindergarten and many also participated in team sports. As a result, they understand cooperation, relationship building and how to compromise better than any other generation.
Unlike Boomers who were raised to compete and rise to the top, Gen Ys value team contribution over individual accomplishment or winning. As a generation (and not without individual exceptions) they are decidedly not a good fit in highly competitive workplaces. They are respectful of authority only after creating personal connections with those who are their bosses. They can be fiercely loyal to customers and employers only when they perceive their work matters and connects them to some greater good.
Paula J. MacLean is the best-selling author of six books for nonprofit leaders. She is an educator and coach for Canadian nonprofit managers, ED/CEOs and boards of directors. Visit learningforleaders.ca for information on online video training (including two free courses), to sign-up for blog posts and for information about books and ebooks.
by Paula MacLean | Board and Executive Directors
The hit reality TV show “Undercover Boss” follows managers of large corporations as they give up a soft boardroom chair for a week of hard work on the line. The jobs they must learn and the problems and people they encounter make for an interesting hour of viewing. At the end of the week, the manager “comes clean” with employees, offering positive feedback and usually money or perks to acknowledge high-performers. Under-performers receive critical feedback and training. The show profiles employees who are company loyal with a few “Negative Nellies” thrown in to add some drama.
Setting aside from the ethical question of managers pretending to be “line workers”, the idea behind walking a mile in employees’ shoes has merit. There is value in managers serving customers directly and experiencing employees’ everyday challenges. Have you ever overheard an employee say: “Those people up there in the office should come down once in a while and see what it’s really like to work here.” Although, their choice of words is sometimes much less polite!
While working on the line, managers gain an unfiltered view of the nitty-gritty challenges, identifying and solving problems that may have otherwise gone undetected. After experiencing a day-in-the life of employees, managers are often surprised at the exceptional skill and positive attitudes of many employees.
The exercise may be good for employee morale however the intimidation factor for employees cannot be under-estimated. Managers who consider embarking on this journey must clearly communicate their intent and must diligently not be the boss. Managers are there to learn, help, understand and support. Kind words and recognition are essential and if critique of individual performance is necessary, it must be given privately and be constructive.
And, it is not out of the question for an employee to walk a mile in a manager’s shoes for a few days. This reverse exercise may debunk the myth that “managers have it easy” and create understanding about the challenges faced by people in leadership roles in the organization.
Paula J. MacLean is the best-selling author of six books for nonprofit leaders. She is an educator and coach for Canadian nonprofit managers, ED/CEOs and boards of directors. Visit learningforleaders.ca for information on online video training (including two free courses), to sign-up for blog posts and for information about books and ebooks.
