How the Board Responds to Progress Reports
As most people know, one of a board’s responsibilities is to monitor the organization’s performance to protect the interest of its owners. However, many board members are not clear on how this important role is best carried out. The board’s role is not to examine operations with a fine tooth comb and tell the staff specifically what enhancements they suggest in daily operations. Rather, the board’s job is to ensure that the organization’s resources are being used to further its mission and that the work is being done within legal and policy limits.
Much of a board’s monitoring work is done through progress reports from staff or committees.
In some organizations it is common practice for progress reports to be given orally at a board meeting. Over 90% of the time at these board meetings might be consumed by report after report. The board members listen to the updates, perhaps make a comment here and there on the organization’s activities, and then adjourn until the next meeting.
An alternate reporting method is to require all staff and committee reports to be in writing and to be circulated to the board members several days before their meeting. This enables board members to digest the report information and consider if the progress is appropriate. They have time to consider the impact of the organization’s activities and, if there are concerns, to ponder what results would be preferred. Since precious board meeting time isn’t taken up listening to reports that could have been digested in advance, there is time at the meeting to address areas of concern.
When the board members’ review of the report confirms that the work being done meets expectations, the board simply commends the staff or volunteers responsible and “receives” the report so the minutes indicate that the board has monitored this aspect of the organization’s work and all is in order.
When reported results are not on track to achieve the organization’s intended results, the board can spend its limited meeting time redirecting the staff or committees. If the report reveals that existing policies have not been followed the board will point out the policies that have been violated and ask for operations to be changed to comply. If the work is not what the board wants but no board policies have been violated, the board’s job is to determine what it expects in similar situations in the future and write a policy which will provide direction from now on. Developing such policies can take hard thinking and considerable time so it important that lower value tasks have not consumed most of the board’s time together. Taking the time to develop the right policies may seem onerous at first, but the investment will pay off by focusing staff and volunteer time on the right objectives and tasks in the future. If the problem arose due to lack of policy direction, the board apologizes to the operational people for failing to provide adequate guidance and requests that they adjust their work to comply with the new policy. To ensure that appropriate changes are made in a timely manner the board may ask to receive a report on such changes by a specific near-future date. The board’s job is to hold staff and volunteers accountable for achieving the results delegated to them, not to develop an alternate list of action steps or to make operational decisions for the staff.
Board’s stay in their role of directing the organization and protecting the owners’ interests when they receive and review operational reports before the board meeting. Then they are prepared for using board meeting time to redirect work that is off task and develop policies that more effectively guide the organization’s future.
