Future of Association Boards | Issue 9 | 11-18-24
Jeff De Cagna AIMP FRSA FASAE
Association contrarian | Foresight practitioner | Governing designer | Stakeholder and Successor advocate | Stewardship catalyst
The Future of Association Boards (FAB) Newsletter is the official newsletter of the Future of Association Boards (FAB) Community Dialogue. Please join the FAB Community Dialogue LinkedIn Group and please also consider following our new FAB Community Dialogue LinkedIn Showcase Page!
In Issue 9
?URGENT ACTION REQUEST! We need your votes AND comments on Poll No. 8. This is a one-week poll that closes this Thursday 11/21 at 8:30 am EST, so we need to know what you think before that deadline. (See our adjusted November/December polling schedule below.)
Please take a moment right now to click on the poll link, cast your vote, AND post a comment to add context to your choice. Thank you!
1. From the Editor: FAB Community Dialogue Continues Exploring Board Composition and Dynamics
This is Issue 8 of the Future of Association Boards (FAB) Newsletter, the official newsletter of the FAB Community Dialogue. At this time of thanksgiving, I want to express my gratitude to each of our more than 1,000 subscribers for being a part our community. If this newsletter was shared by a colleague, I hope you will subscribe.)
Poll No. 7 closed last week with the three identified structural impediments to seating high-performing boards (board composed by election, board composed by geography, and only members eligible to serve) combining for the overwhelming majority vote about which I wrote in Issue 8. In an interesting and somewhat unexpected finish, geographic board composition edged out electoral composition for the plurality vote. We will explore geographic composition issues in Poll No. 9, which will be posted on Thursday 12/5 at 8:30 am EST.
In Poll No. 8, we are directing our attention toward four electoral composition issues: 1) great people won't "run", 2) electoral composition is inherently inequitable, 3) electoral composition is a popularity contest, and 4) elected candidates will put their "constituents" first. As of the day I'm writing this newsletter (11/16), the conversation is moving in a clear direction and I have serious questions.
Please join the conversation happening in the Poll No. 8 comments (see several comments below) by voting AND commenting on the poll before it closes this Thursday 11/21 at 8:30 am EST.
?? IMPORTANT CHANGES TO OUR POLLING SCHEDULE! We have adjusted our November and December polling schedule to accommodate the upcoming U.S. holidays. Instead of two-week polls, we are conducting one-week polls for the duration of 2024. The polling schedule for the remainder of this year is below. (FYI, all polls will open and close at 8:30 am ET on the specified dates.)
?? Poll No. 8 closes this Thursday 11/21. (Please vote AND comment TODAY!)
?? Poll No. 9 will open on Thursday 12/5 and close on Thursday 12/12.
?? Poll No. 10 will open on Thursday 12/12 and close on Thursday 12/19.
The best way to stay informed on polls and other FAB Community Dialogue activities is to join the FAB Community Dialogue LinkedIn Group and enable group post notifications.
?? IMPORTANT NOTE: Please scroll further to learn how you can enable group post notifications! ??
2. On the FAB Agenda: Current State of Poll No. 8
[The On the FAB Agenda section will direct your attention toward the FAB Community Dialogue's current poll and conversations. As our dialogue continues, this section will include more commentary and sharing of key ideas, insights, and takeaways.]
FAB Community Dialogue Poll No. 8 is open now and will be through this Thursday 11/21 at 8:30 am EST, which means there is still time for all FAB group members and newsletter subscribers to participate. If you have not yet voted, I urge you to do so AND please also share your thoughts in a comment on the poll. Your comments situate your vote in context and provide richness to our discussion.
Here is a selection of comments from Poll No. 8 so far:
"The choices are based on having a competitive election, so in that case, I stand by the choice that it is a popularity contest as the first two choices, I believe, are a result of that. I'm not a fan of competitive elections for associations - all of these problems can result, as well as others, like losing great people since someone won't get picked." <Carey Goryl>
"Sadly, popularity triumphs because most election processes do not function well in the association community. The idea of popular elections is intended to provide the electorate with time to learn about, meet with, and consider or debate issues with other candidates and the electorate. Geography is a key factor in distributing some element of diversity, but that is a false assumption in today’s environment." <Michael Butera>
"I chose inherently inequitable because there is a bias among boards to look at longevity and position. Popularity was my close second." <Silvia Quevedo>
"We use a nominating committee to help focus on getting the best candidates. However we often have different terms based on the filling of an open slot. It is human nature that the actual election turns into “who knows who the best” as the nominating committee makes sure all candidates are qualified and will serve the organization well." <Jeff Morgan>
"When members are “automatically” moved up to the Board without any vetting you don’t always get the best of the organization. It is very political instead of competency based." <Colleen Lawler>
"Great people won't 'run' - It is easy for association professionals to forget that board volunteers often put their professional reputation and relationships at risk when stepping into a Board role. Competitive elections - distinct from candidate slate elections - require candidates to invest time into building politically valuable relationships and I believe the people we need to recruit into Board positions should be those who invest their time in understanding the needs of the profession/industry rather than the various constituencies that make up the 'electorate'. One could argue that the political capital of Board members could be leveraged to advance certain initiatives within an organization, but it is my understanding of Board governance that the Board should be defining the destination of the organization rather than leveraging their political capital to advance specific initiatives. Competitive elections, in my opinion, accumulate the biases of an organization and do little if anything to disrupt commitment to the status quo." <Aaron Gregory Smith>
Jeff's Serious Questions
?? IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have not yet participated in Poll No. 8, I urge you to vote AND comment ASAP!
The Poll No. 8 conversation is raising some serious questions for me on which I hope all group members and subscribers will reflect:
?? Question #1: If we are serious about wanting well-qualified people to take on the crucial work of association board service, why do force them to "run" for the opportunity and put them at risk for the professional humiliation of public defeat?
?? Question #2: If we are serious about making our community's board's more diverse, why do we continue to use composition processes that we know do not offer all candidates an equitable opportunity for success?
?? Question #3: If we are serious about seating high-performing boards, why do we continue to use composition processes that nearly always elevate attributes of personal likeability over competence and fitness for board service?
?? Question #4: If we are serious about unifying boards around the purpose of association stewardship, why do we continue to use composition processes that might encourage directors and officers to have divided intentions and loyalties?
Please consider these questions when you vote AND comment on Poll No. 8 by this Thursday 11/21 at 8:30 am EST. Our next poll, Poll No. 9, will be posted on Thursday 12/5 at 8:30 am EST and will consider the issues raised by geographic board composition. Please join us!
?? What do you think? You can post a comment directly to this newsletter or join the FAB Community Dialogue LinkedIn group and publish your own post on association board composition and dynamics! (Please review the group's posting guidelines by clicking on the square "i" icon located at the top of the group page before your publish.)
3. Call to Action: Vote on Polls No. 8 and Join Upcoming FAB Conversations
[The Call to Action section will keep you current on what’s happening in the FAB Community Dialogue during the two weeks between issues and share upcoming key dates you should have on your calendar.]
?? FAB Community Dialogue Poll No. 8—Poll No. 8 will close this Thursday 11/21 at 8:30 am EST. Please join the group to be notified when polls are posted! (See more information on receiving group post notifications below.)
IMPORTANT REQUEST: At the time you vote in these polls, please also add a comment below each one so we can better understand the context behind your choices. Thank you!
?? FAB Community Dialogue November Zoom Meeting (THIS Friday 11/22 at 2 pm EST)—Register to participate in an open, real-time conversation about our November learning and bring your questions for your colleagues. Please join us to learn how you can win an Amazon gift card just in time for the holiday season!
?? FAB Community Dialogue December Kickoff Event (Wednesday 12/4 at 1:30 pm EST)— Register for our thirty-minute kickoff event on Zoom during which we will begin our December conversations and preview Poll No. 9, which will be posted the following morning.
?? MARK YOUR CALENDAR! On Thursday 2/6/25 at 2 pm EST, I will facilitate a free public webinar on critical themes and takeaways from the Future of Association Boards (FAB) Community Dialogue. During the webinar, hosted with my partners, Impexium: Association Management Solutions, we will release a shareable infographic presenting the critical themes and takeaways to the association community. Stay tuned for registration details...all association community stakeholders are invited to participate!
?? PLEASE ENABLE ALL GROUP NOTIFICATIONS! At the very top of the group page, you should see a bell icon that displays in one of three ways: 1) double bells indicating you have enabled all group notifications, 2) one bell indicating that you have enabled the "most relevant" group notifications based on your activity, or 3) a bell with a slash indicating you have turned off group notifications.
Keeping you informed on what's happening with the FAB Community Dialogue is among my top priorities. To facilitate our communications, I would sincerely appreciate it if you would click on the bell icon and select the double bells to enable all group notifications. (If you need any help, please message me.) Thank you!
4. About the FAB Community Dialogue
The FAB Community Dialogue officially launched in August 2024, and will continue into 2025. This initiative, presented by Impexium: Association Management Solutions and Foresight First LLC, is an intentional learning process that invites contributors from across the association community to collaborate in an exploration of the most challenging questions facing association boards for the rest of this decade and beyond. We hope you will join us!
?? EDITOR'S HOLIDAY NOTE: This is Issue 9 and I want to wish our US-based subscribers a very Happy Thanksgiving! Please have a great holiday and we will see you in December!
Look for Issue 10 of the Future of Association Boards (FAB) Newsletter on Monday 12/2. Thank you for reading!