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Executive Transition: Horror Story or Opportunity?

Published
by
Hildy
on January 30, 2008
in Capacity Building, Stop Signs on the Road to Changing the World and Tools to Use Now
. 0 Comments

One cannot spend time in the Community Benefit* Sector without hearing horror stories of Executive Transitions gone bad. Given the huge turnover occurring as founders and long-time CEOs retire, this is a serious Stop Sign on the road to changing our world!

(To see other Stop Signs along the Road to Changing the World, just click here.)

Stop Sign: Executive Transition

First, let’s be clear: When it comes to hiring horror stories, leaders in Community Benefit Organizations are not alone. Just ask the business people on your board about their hiring batting average in their “real” lives. You will find some good stories, mixed in with a litany of horror stories.

Dimitri and I have done enough of this work to know it can create great results. We have facilitated transitions that brought peace of mind AND joy to all involved.

So why do so many Executive Transitions go wrong? And why do board members not see that the train is about to hit them, when everyone else around them, especially the staff, sees it plain as day?

Here is some of what we realize is at the heart of all the horror stories:

1) Boards see Executive Transition FIRST as a problem to be solved, and only then as an opportunity for creating something positive.

2) Board members know hiring and firing is their domain. And they feel fortunate that they have experience in hiring from their “real lives.”

3) The result of #1 & #2, though, is that board members close ranks rather than opening up and sharing ideas. They close ranks because they are in charge and it’s their job, and their job alone, to hire. They close ranks because they are the experts at hiring, as they do it all the time in their “real” lives. And they close ranks because problem-solving tends to encourage the closing of ranks.

4) Unfortunately, while board members may think they know how to hire, most do not know how to do it well, given their own hiring horror stories from those “real lives.” And so, the result of their closing ranks is to exclude from the discussion the very people who might warn them that the train is headed right for them.

So what to do? In an article we published last week at Help 4 NonProfits, I provide some detailed how-to steps. But here is the abridged version (ok, very abridged!):

1) Yes, boards are in charge of the hiring process. But FIRST they are in charge of something more important - they are the keepers of the organization’s vision and values, its core purpose. Sadly, boards both large and small see vision and values as extra, as fluff. And that is the first step in bad hiring.

The first step in GOOD hiring, therefore, is to understand that the board is the keeper of the organization’s purpose, and to then translate that purpose into everything the board does - including hiring.

2) Have a succession plan, and keep it updated, all the time. Making a succession plan only when it’s too late is - well - too late!

3) Hire for the future, not to solve today’s problems. Again, this comes back to vision and values. Your CEO is not about what’s wrong with today - he or she is about what’s possible for tomorrow.

4) And that leads to the most critical step: View Executive Transition as a celebration of what is possible. Because change is only problem-solving if that is how you see it.

Executive Transition can create incredible strength in an organization. When I finished writing the story at the end of the article at our website, I emailed the ED in that story, telling her that my writing had caused me to reflect on what an extraordinary job she is doing, and how blessed the organization is to have her there. I could tell from our email exchange that both of us were welling up with tears - tears for how perfect the fit is, and for the amazing things that organization is accomplishing.

That is what is possible. But it is only possible when we stop seeing Executive Transition as a problem to be solved, and we start celebrating the future the organization has the opportunity to create for the community.

* Curious about our use of the term “Community Benefit Sector?” Click here to learn more.

11 Ways to Focus on Vision and Values

Published
by
Hildy
on January 12, 2008
in Capacity Building, Changing the World and Tools to Use Now
. 2 Comments

If the problems at the Red Cross teach average, run-of-the-mill organizations anything, it is that a failure to put vision and values into action can cause all sorts of seemingly unrelated headaches.

So how can an organization stay focused on what matters most? How can they align their day-to-day work behind their vision and values?

(If you missed it, the first part of this post is here - The Red Cross’s Real Problem: It’s Not What You Think )

1 - Articulate What Matters: To put vision and values into action, we have to know our vision and values! So first up, clearly state your vision for the change you want to create. And clearly state the morals that will guide that work.

2 - Fill in the Blank (Vision): Your organization’s vision is not for itself, but for the community you serve. So fill in this blank:

Our vision is a community that __________________.

3 - Fill in the Blank (Values): If you are going to walk your talk, what is the talk you want to walk? What are the lines your organization will never cross?

Fill in this blank:

When we have tough decisions to make, we will always err on the side of _______________.

4 - Values-Based Credo: Combine #2 & #3 to create a Values-Based Credo that says “This is what we stand for, this is who we are.”

“Our vision is ____________. We can only accomplish that vision if we do our work in a way that is ___________, __________, and ____________”.

Bonus tip: Post that statement everywhere - in every newsletter, on your website, in your employee handbook. I even helped an organization insert their credo into their bylaws, as the definitive guide for doing their work.

5 - Plan for Your Vision: Create a Community Impact Plan to ensure you are working to make that vision a reality. Vision is only a pipe dream if we do nothing to achieve it.

6 - Plan for Your Values: Create values-based policies beforehand, to address common issues before they become problems. Ask questions such as these:

“Given our stated values, if we have a budget shortfall, what is the appropriate action to take?”

“If we are offered a large donation from a group that seems to go counter to our mission, is it ok to accept the gift?” (For example, if yours is a recovery organization, and the gift is from the local beer distributor.)

Discuss as many of these “hot button” possibilities before they happen - before all those internal fears and external forces are weighing down for real.

7 - Keep Your Values in Sight: I mean literally in sight. Make sure you have copies of your Values Statement on the table at every board meeting, at every committee meeting. Make it easy to adhere to them by making them ever-present.

8 - Staff Evaluation and Values: Staff evaluations usually focus on what an employee did, often noting that it is more difficult to focus on “How they did it.” Unfortunately, “How they did it” is usually where the problem is! So tell employees up front that their evaluation will include adhering to your Values Statement / Credo as they do their work. And then measure against that.

9 - Keep Your Eye on the Prize: The difference your board is there to make will become the context of all their decisions if they ask the following question for each and every decision:

“If we were focused 100% on our vision for the future of the community - the difference we are here to make - what decision would be the right one? Would it be different from the answer we are considering?”

This can be the job of the board chair, in facilitating the meeting. Or it can be the job of the board secretary to monitor, prior to each vote. “Excuse me, before we vote - we forgot to relate this decision to the difference we want to make for our community.”

Try this at just one meeting, and see the difference it makes - and how quickly it makes that difference!

10 - Pay Your Community First: “Get rich” books always advise the best way to save is to “pay yourself first” - that as soon as you get your paycheck, you take a percentage off the top and put it into savings / investments. The advice is that you take care of what is most important FIRST, before life’s distractions get in the way.

At every board meeting, have board members remind themselves of WHY they are meeting - the difference they are there to make - by spending the first 5 minutes discussing just that. Just 5 minutes can set the tone for the entire meeting, giving the board something to touch back on during tough decisions.

11 - Board Self-Evaluation via Vision and Values: Your vision statement and your values statement can create a simple yet powerful board self-assessment. Every few months (or if you are ambitious, at the end of every meeting), answer the following questions:

Vision: Have we focused our discussions and decisions on the future those decisions will create for our community? Or have we focused entirely on the internal day-to-day? How might we change our board’s work to aim at our vision for the community?

Values: Have we done our work in a way that models the behaviors we want to see in others? And if not, how might we change our board’s work to ensure we are indeed walking our talk?

And finally,

12 - Bonus Tip: What has been your experience with Vision and Values in the organizations where you work? Are they the focus of everything, or just words on a page? And what will you do this week to make sure they are, in fact, what matters most?

Have you read our white paper? Simple Things Your Organization Can Learn from the Red Cross’s Mistakes.

Photo credit - Dimitri Petropolis 2007

Holiday Gifts for a Better World

Published
by
Hildy
on November 26, 2007
in Changing the World and Tools to Use Now
. 1 Comment

If there is one thing the world does NOT need right now, it is lots of people buying lots of useless stuff, racking up more credit card debt in the name of Peace on Earth / Goodwill to Men.

But on the flip side, if there is one thing the world DOES need right now, it is connection, tenderness, sweetness. Yes, what the world needs now is love! (Great, now I can’t get the image out of my head - Burt Bacharach on the top level of that double decker bus in Austin Powers!)

So here is the start of a holiday gift list that
a) will create connection,
b) friends and family will love, and
c) is free or cheap!

Please let’s add to this list. It will be a great resource to pull out in years to come, as we are all trying to figure out what to do!

Special Note for Community Organizations
Many of these can be adapted for your organization’s use, not just now but throughout the year. They will make great suggestions for your donors and volunteers as well. If you have other ideas that have worked for you, to engage folks even more during the holidays (not to increase donations - to increase connection), please share!

Doing Something
My 50th birthday taught me that having a friend spend an hour fixing my kitchen sink (a drip I had simply grown accustomed to) was a GREAT gift! So I have decided to pay that forward this year, helping friends with the little nagging chores they don’t want to do.

And by the way - points are deducted if you give them a certificate to do it and then never do it. That will apply to a number of these. (I have a pile of those certificates at home, some dating back to 1993, all waiting to be redeemed. And yes, you know who you are!)

Spending Time Together
This seems like a no-brainer, but our friends and family want time with us more than they want yet another bottle of perfume or another shirt.

I am on the road so much, my mom has threatened to carry a large photo of me wherever she goes, to remind her of what I look like. (She can’t help it; she’s Jewish. The guilt is genetic.) But even when we’re not traveling, life is just so busy. So every year, my mom and I set aside an evening that starts with an early supper. Then I drive her all over town, looking at Christmas lights. We head up to the resorts, we drive through Winterhaven - Tucson’s way-over-the-top Christmas neighborhood.

Even if it’s just setting aside every third Tuesday for breakfast with a friend (something I need to start up again, now that I think of it), time together is WAY better than presents.

Don’t Just Donate to Charity
Yes, definitely donate to charity. But what if, in addition to donating, you and your friend or loved one spend some time together volunteering at their favorite charity? Donations are great, but giving a cash donation and spending time together is fun!

Buy Used
Goodwill. Craig’s List. Great gifts, cheap prices, recycling, saving the planet. ‘Nuff said.

A Friend in Need
Many of us have had rough patches in our lives, when, for whatever reason, we needed a bit of a financial boost. Sometimes it is when we are first out of college. Sometimes it is later on - a crisis hits, and life falls apart.

Having been there, I know the best gifts I got during those times were gift certificates for the basics. Target, the supermarket, Home Depot, the drug store. For anyone going through a rough time, or for college kids just getting started after graduation, I just remember the peace of mind those gifts always brought me. We tend to want to get folks something to splurge a little when times are tough, but in truth, knowing you can make ends meet that month is sometimes the best splurge there is.

Giving an Experience
When my daughter, Lizzie, was little, one of her favorite movies was Singin’ in the Rain. (Oh that video! Over and over and over and over and over. But I digress…) One holiday season a few years ago, when my best friend’s daughter was 7 or so, Lizzie noticed that Singin’ in the Rain was playing on the big screen at our local art cinema.

So we bought 7-year-old Millie the video, and we took her to see the movie on the big screen. And sure enough, it became a favorite of hers. (Over and over and over. Her mom was ready to kill us!)

I know Millie would have soon forgotten just another doll or video game. But she will remember going to see Singin’ in the Rain!

Starting a Tradition
It has always been hard to find the right gift for my mom. But when Lizzie was born, the dilemma multiplied - now I had to get two gifts, one from me, and one from my mother’s new granddaughter!

One day, while I was shopping, I found a pair of funky socks I knew my mom would like. From that point on, for every holiday, every birthday, every Mother’s Day, Lizzie got Grandma socks. As Lizzie grew up, we would go sock shopping together. And now that she is grown, she always knows what to get Grandma. (Imagine my mother’s pride when Lizzie was working on Capitol Hill and got her a pair of Congressional Socks!)

My mother beams from ear to ear as she tells how her friends always check out her feet first thing when they see her, to see which socks she is wearing!

*******************************************

Ok - I’m out of ideas. Anyone else have ideas you’ve used that connect lives rather than collect junk?

Now if you’ll forgive me, I need to go get that song out of my head. “What the world needs now, is love sweet love…”

Photo Credit: Hildy

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