Nonprofit Board Excellence: Board Leadership Workshops
Board Leadership Workshops 2009-2010 (Rochester only)
Never has more been expected of our nonprofit organizations. More than ever, their ability to meet these expectations will depend, in large measure, on their governing boards.
This marks the fifth year that the Center for Community Engagement is offering the Board Leadership Workshop series. Workshops are designed to provide nonprofit board leaders, board members, and executive staff the ideas and tools to enable their boards to function more effectively in today’s increasingly challenging environment. Registration priority will be given to board chairs.
Workshop Topics:
- The ABCs of Building a Great Board – Friday, October 23, 2009
- The Changing Role of Finance and Audit Committees – Thursday, December 10, 2009
- Board and CEO: The Critical Partnership – Thursday, January 14, 2010
- A Resource Development Primer for Boards – Friday, February 12, 2010
- Planning and Performance Oversight in the Small and Midsize Nonprofit – Wednesday, March 3, 2009
- Government and the Nonprofit: What Boards Need to Know – Thursday, March 11, 2010
- How to Keep Your Board Engaged and Productive – Thursday, April 8, 2010
- Governance and the “Hands On” Board – Thursday, May 13, 2010
Click here for the registration form.
All workshops meet 8:30 – 11 a.m. in the Hughes Rotunda at St. John Fisher College,
3690 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14618. Parking is available.
Fee: $40/person includes continental breakfast.
Please send completed registration form and check made payable to Partnership for Nonprofit Enterprise Excellence to:
Melanie Phillips, Operations Administrator
Center for Community Engagement
St. John Fisher College
3690 East Avenue
Rochester, NY 14618
Phone: 585-899-3769
Workshop Descriptions
The ABCs of Building a Great Board
Date: Friday, October 23, 2009
Presenters: Howard Berman, Center for Community Engagement
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board leaders and executive staff.
Great boards do not just happen. They are the result of explicit, systematic policies and processes. Board leaders will understand the specifics of the systems they need to build and maintain. Topics will include:
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The importance of governance
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Role of the board and responsibilities of board members
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Board member recruitment – finding and getting the right members
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Board continuing education – understanding the organization and the board’s role
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Board member development
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Renewing and refreshing the board
The Changing Role of the Finance and Audit Committees: The New Spotlight
Date: Thursday, December 10, 2009
Presenter: Nancy Snyder, Partner, The Bonadio Group
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board leaders, especially finance and audit committee chairs and members, and executive staff.
This workshop enables board committee chairs to understand their overall responsibilities as well as their increased accountability for assuring the organization is meeting changing financial standards and expectations. Topics will include:
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NYS Attorney General’s new requirements for nonprofits
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Need for checks and balances
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Role of the independent auditor; how to manage this relationship
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Identifying and heading off financial issues
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Regulatory reporting requirements
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Public reporting opportunities
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Who has to sign what and what it means
Board and CEO: The Critical Partnership
Date: Thursday, January 14, 2010
Presenter: Howard Berman, Center for Community Engagement
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board leaders and executive staff.
Hiring and working with the CEO is one of the board’s most important functions and critical to the success of the organization. Board leaders will understand the best practices for managing the board-CEO relationship. Topics will include:
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Recruiting and hiring
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Clarifying roles and responsibilities
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Supervising the CEO: Who does what and how?
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Evaluation – It begins with a plan
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Compensation
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What to do if the relationship turns sour
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What to do if board leaders or members step beyond the line
Volunteer Fundraising Is Not Just Signing a Letter: A Resource Development Primer for Boards
Date: Friday, February 12, 2010
Presenter: Dan Meyers, President, Al Sigl Community of Agencies
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board leaders, especially development chairs, and executive staff.
The importance of developing and executing a strategy for creating capital, both from internally- generated operating surpluses and fundraising efforts, will be addressed. As part of this discussion, the role of the board and individual board members in fundraising – both annual and endowment giving – will be explored. Also, the general strategies for managing endowment investments will be outlined. Topics will include:
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Board members and other volunteers as fundraisers
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Roles of board leadership vs. staff
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Some can’t, some won’t – matching the right volunteer with the job
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Giving volunteers the tools they need
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Special fundraising activities, e.g., annual giving, endowment
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Communications strategies and support
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Developing annual and long range plans
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Monitoring, assessing, and improving performance
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When is a consultant appropriate?
Political Literacy for Nonprofits: How to be Effective in Albany and Washington
Date: Thursday, March 11, 2010
Presenter: Fran Weisberg, Executive Director, Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board leaders and executive staff.
Do you know what a member item or an earmark is? When to talk with a legislator, when to talk with staff? Most important, do your legislators know who you are and what you do? Whether your interest is funding, regulation, or public policy, what happens in Albany and Washington has a great impact on your organization and you should be involved in shaping it. Topics will include:
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How things get done in Albany and Washington
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Building relationships with both public officials and staff
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Framing your public policy objectives and making your strongest case
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Developing alliances
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Roles of board members and executives
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When hiring a professional lobbyist makes sense
Creating Excitement in Your Board: How to Keep Your Board Engaged and Productive
Date: Thursday, April 8, 2010
Presenter: Carol Love, Center for Community Engagement
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board leaders and executive staff.
Are you hearing from board members that they don't feel fully involved and “useful?” You’re not alone! As nonprofits have grown and responded to new challenges in their business environment, there is growing recognition of the importance of establishing a governance model in which the board focuses on the strategic, and the CEO is empowered to act quickly without processing decisions through committees and the board. Healthy as this is, the loss of “hands on” opportunities where many board members spent their time and found their “reward,” has left chairs and CEOs puzzled as to how they can engage the board in a way that is value-added for all. Topics will include:
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How governance is changing and why
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Getting board members off to a good start
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Meetings that generate enthusiasm, excitement, and engagement
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Board work plans that document commitment to actions aligned with the strategic plan
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Individual and collective board evaluations and continuous improvement
Governance and the “Hands On” Board
Date: Thursday, May 13, 2010
Presenter: Carol Love, Center for Community Engagement
Intended Audience: This workshop is for board and executive leadership of organizations with hands on boards.
If your board is one whose members govern and at the same time perform duties that in larger organizations are handled by staff, this workshop is for you. All boards must have clarity around board and CEO responsibilities. Yet the reality of limited staff resources can blur the line as board members are called upon to provide “hands on” assistance, as well as advice and counsel on both strategic and operational matters. This workshop will help you tap board resources while maintaining the integrity of both board and management functions. Focusing on the real issues facing the participants, the workshop will address:
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Fundamental board and CEO/staff responsibilities
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Guidelines for board assistance in operations
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What to think about when recruiting and orienting board members
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What your staff needs to know about involving board members
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Building better board meetings
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Planning the board's work
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Who's accountable? Setting goals and measuring performance for board and staff
