Leadership Atlanta’s Post

Does your board chair have special powers? Nope. We often see nonprofit board chairs acting unilaterallly. In most cases, they are working outside of the scope of their formal role, and this can lead to problems with transparency and accountability on your board. When a board chair acts outside of their role, they may inadvertently constrain their organization’s governance by: 🛑 Acting as a filter for essential information that the board requires 🛑 Having an undue influence over decision making 🛑 Restricting opportunities for board discussion 🛑 Impacting key governance relationships This can open up areas of risk for the board and the organization, and it adds unnecessary pressure to the board chair role. It’s important to remember that the board chair is just one member of a board of directors, with a few additional responsibilities. The chair role is spelled out in the organization’s bylaws and policy. Bylaws usually designate the chair as the person who can call and preside over board meetings. In policy, role descriptions often set out additional expectations around the chair role. In practice, board chairs are often making decisions about sharing or withholding information from the board, regularly giving direction to the ED/CEO, and working ‘offline’ to influence the outcome of key governance decisions. This becomes a problem when the full scope of the chair’s actions are not empowered by, or reported to the board as a whole. Because even when the board chair is acting in good faith, they can easily become a gatekeeper to the board. So how can your board ensure the limits on the chair role are respected? 🔸 Clearly define the scope of the board chair’s role in policy. The board as a whole should scrutinize (or develop!) the role description for the chair, ensuring that responsibilities and authorities are clearly spelled out and collectively understood. 🔸 Build formal accountability between the chair and the board. Regular reports from the chair at board meetings help, as can a focus on chair accountability during the board's self-evaluation. 🔸 Embrace an ethos of transparency on your board. Confidentiality is not the same as secrecy. When information is withheld, filtered or obscured, you're keeping secrets. 🔸 Empower board members to act independently through a formal vote. When the board wants to appoint an individual to act independently, a formal vote should detail the appropriate scope, time frame, and accountability measures. These approaches will help clarify the scope of the chair role and ensure that the board as a whole can govern effectively. And as a bonus, it takes some of the pressure off of the chair to be the go-to problem solver for all governance issues! In the comments, please share: ✅ Your questions, comments and critiques. ✅ Other helpful approaches to improving role clarity and transparency on boards. #nonprofitleadership #nonprofitboards

Announcing the speaker lineup for the 2024 HACR Executive Programs! Hispanic executives are heading to Atlanta for an electrifying experience next week at the 2024 HACR Executive Programs! This highly anticipated event will feature two-and-a-half days of tailored content for Hispanic executives aiming to amplify their impact in Corporate America. Fireside Chats: • Gale King, Former EVP & Chief Administrative Officer, Nationwide • Mark Nelson, Vice Chairman, Chevron • Oscar Munoz, Former Chairman and CEO, United Airlines • Peter Gleason, President and CEO, NACD (National Association of Corporate Directors) Day One Speakers: • Alejandro Nieto, VP Franchise Operations, Coca-Cola North America, The Coca-Cola Company • Ana Dutra, Independent Board Director • Cheryl Stokes, CEO, CNEXT Partners • Elliott Segarra, Managing Director, Accenture • Jesús Mantas, Board Member, Biogen • Myrna Soto, Founder and CEO, Apogee Executive Advisors • Sandra Lopez, Independent Board Director Day Two Speakers: • Clarissa Benavides JD CIPP CIPM FIP CCEP Benavides, Managing Counsel, AI & Cybersecurity, Toyota Financial Services Corporation • Diana S., Senior Counsel, Global Generative AI Lead, IBM Consulting, IBM • Eduardo Martinez, Esq., Independent Board Director • Elizabeth Chalas Berman, President & CEO, Continental Food and Beverage, Inc. • Fernando Hernandez, Senior Director, Supplier Diversity, The Coca-Cola Company • George Herrera, Board Director, Travel + Leisure Co. • Ines Rodriguez Gutzmer, SVP, Chief Communications Officer, Aflac • Jessica Kannya, SVP, Consumer Lending Enablement Executive, Business, Bank of America • Lucinda Martinez, Board Director, Travel + Leisure Co. • Monica Diaz, President and Principal, D&I-MD • Michael Brown, CEO of Travel + Leisure Co. • Pablo Tapia, Senior Corporate Counsel, Microsoft • Ray Smith, Feature Reporter, The Wall Street Journal This conference is tailored to address the unique challenges and opportunities faced by Hispanic executives striving for success in Corporate America. Attendees will enhance leadership skills, expand their professional networks, and stay ahead of industry trends at the 2024 HACR Executive Programs. Have a peek at the full agenda for more details: HACR Executive Programs | Agenda (hacrevents.org) Registration is closed, but we invite you to follow along on our social media channels. Mark your calendars for the 2025 HACR Executive Programs in Chicago, June 9-11, 2025! #HACREP24 #HACREP25 #HACR #Hispanic #Latino #Latina #Latinx #BoardDiversity #CorporateAmerica #Innovation #AI #Leadership #Networking #Chicago #Atlanta

DEI committee members are some of my favorites because they're people who knew they didn’t have all the answers, but they also couldn’t just sit around watching people be harmed, and not do anything about it. For many of them, the clearest way to take action when there’s no system in place is to join or start their company’s DEI Committee.  That’s when the real mental hurdle kicks in. Because just like with allyship, there’s no manual for how to be effective as a DEI Committee. Where do we start? And once we start, how do we make sure our work is not performative? We all know how easy it is to have good intentions, but when there’s a lack of follow-through, harm can happen.  The thought of harming our co-workers when we intend to help them can make us give up before we even get going.  The good news is that we can use the principles of Inclusive Leadership to create a framework and strategy that can pursue sustainability, success, and even joy. There are three specific steps plus one launch project that will set up any DEI Committee for success. And if the committee is already going, going back to solidify the foundation in Q1 can mean a massive difference in how impactful you’ll in be in 2024.  Join us for the quarterly executive roundtable LAUNCH, just for DEI committee members. These are virtual, private, and never-recorded conversations with others in my network who are doing the best they can to create social impact within corporate structures. The next one is Thursday, February 22 at 11 am MST and we will discuss those foundation three steps and perfect first project. DM me for the calendar invite. If you want on the list for the next one but can’t make this one, let me know!

And The Award Goes To 🏆 A great way to be noticed is by getting an award 🏆 or industry recognition. Not only do you get noticed, it helps establish you as an expert or leader in your field. No matter your business size 🏆 will boost your visibility. 🎗 Some awards you can nominate yourself for, and others need 3rd party to nominate you. 🎗 Carefully research which awards are relevant, both large (national) and small (local). 🎗 Give full attention to the requirements and deadlines. 🎗 Highlight your achievements, results, innovations, or impact you or your company have made. 🎗 When possible quantify your impact. Numbers add weight to your submission. 🎗 Get a testimonial from a client or respected member of the community. ▶ When you get that award promote the win across your social media and marketing channels. ▶ Consider a press release of your award to get further recognition. ▶ Add the organization logos to your website, email, packaging, storefront, etc. Transparency note: I have no affiliation with Carrie Charles, however, I wanted to highlight a recent award winner, give her the shout-out she deserves, and highlight the value of industry recognition. https://lnkd.in/eHBeRyGS

Seven techniques to strengthen board decision making. Decision sequencing: While ‘rushed decisions’ become necessary in times of exigencies, ordinarily, the board should have an opportunity to ‘sleep over the issue’ and arrive at considered decisions. Non-binding straw polls: This technique involves taking votes which ‘do not count’ to gauge the views of board members and foster a more nuanced discussion. Fist-to-five voting: Fist-to-five voting is a technique within which the degree of support for an issue can easily be determined for both the board as a whole and for each voting member. Here, raising the fist means a ‘no vote’, while the degree of support is measured by the number of fingers raised. Supermajority models: The board can specify certain areas where a supermajority (two-thirds) is required, not just in case of subjects specified by the country’s law or the company’s by-laws. Secret ballots: In controversial decisions, or when there may be pressure on board members to vote in certain ways, a secret ballot allows them to vote their conscience in confidence without fear of repercussion or reprisal. Avoiding decision fatigue by restructuring board agendas: A simple technique to improve board decision making is to place the significant decisions at the beginning of the meeting, and put the more routine ones, which are far less likely to be negatively affected by decision fatigue, at the end of the agenda. Authority matrix: Boards can use an authority matrix to create a decision protocol that clearly defines what type of decisions will be made by the board as distinct from executive management. #IndependentDirectors #CorporateGovernance #BoardPractices https://lnkd.in/gTyvfKzg

Always look forward to presenting the Digital Advocate of the Year Award for ByrneWallace LLP at the annual Digital Business Ireland National Digital Awards. It's been a big 12 months for digital, and we're still mulling over who it's going to be. #digitalbusiness #digitalbusinesstransformation

A huge congrats to you, Stuart (Stu)! Segal is fortunate to have you in your new role, and I’m excited to see the ATC team’s continued success under Jeff’s #leadership! 🍾 🥂 💙 #publicsector #HR #HumanResources #employeebenefits #localgov #localgovernment #informationtechnology #technology #consulting

Most weeks I try to take time to reflect- what’s going well, what’s not, and what to work on. A few weeks ago, I wrote in my Reflection Journal the word "Congratulations", and listed the highlights for the year, and here's the thing...   In just listing highlights off the top of my head, winning the Supreme Award for the David Business Awards came in at No. 11 (out of 12). I wasn't ranking the highlights in order of importance- just listing them as they came to mind (and I am certainly incredibly grateful (and to be honest, still shocked) at having won that accolade).   My point is this- in your position, in your business, in your life, there will have been highlights that are worth noting and reflecting on (and even celebrating). Awards aren’t a “thing” in and of themselves- they are recognition of a whole bunch of good “things”. No doubt many of the other David Awards Applicants have many, many aspects to their businesses that are worth recognizing and celebrating, whether they won an award or not.   It's great to stop and consider what’s gone well this year. It’s worth sharing that with family, co-workers, your team. The chapter of 2024 is about to open with a wave of new challenges (both seen and unforeseen), and once it does, the opportunity to stop and reflect on the “wins” of this year will be gone.   I encourage you to do this, especially if it’s been a tough year. Like you I’ve had challenges, and this exercise is not, in any way, a strategy to avoid tackling the tough issues, but it is a great platform from which to tackle them.   Well done on doing your best again this year.

Lots of folks have been talking about the market for DEI consultants. While some organizations may find the current political climate as the perfect opportunity to scrap DEI initiatives, I've found that this climate has actually produced more innovation and deeper, more meaningful DEI work for those who are committed to changing. Here are a few things that we are focused on at ShiftED Consulting.

Private Company Governance is quickly maturing. Private company boards are increasingly assuming many of the same responsibilities and best practices as public companies. That's been a huge takeaway from this week's Private Company Governance Summit - amazing companies, growing quickly, quietly & humbly, with the oversight and guidance of insightful and effective boards. But here's the thing. Owners can vest the board with authority, and the board chair can ensure that governance is superb.....but you need the right directors, including independents; selected for culture, expertise, fit against the skills matrix, etc. Sometimes those are unicorns - but you have to keep looking and upgrade appropriately. The days of lifetime sinecures are over, and the pool extends well beyond neighbors and acquaintances. Great session on How to Find Great Board Members with Bill Etnyre, Sally Washlow, fellow Private Directors Association® member Alyssa Gelbard, and moderated by NACD (National Association of Corporate Directors) Marcel Bucsescu. Key takeaway from Sally, don't forget your target market. You may find an ideal independent director among your customers and prospects. #IndependentDirector #BoardGovernance #Governance #RecruitingDirectors #BoardOversight MLR Media Private Company Director Directors & Boards