Welcome to LeadingAge Kansas’ ninth issue of Guiding Governance. Each quarter this publication focuses on a specific governance topic to help you, your leadership team and your board in planning, strategic thinking, and execution as you seek to sustain and amplify your mission. Our next 10 issues will continue to highlight a principle from BoardSource’s The Source – Twelve Principles of Governance that Power Exceptional Boards.
Remember, exceptional governance does not happen by accident. If we want staff and volunteer leadership partnerships that add value to our organizations, we must intentionally focus on our governance practices – constantly refining and evolving.
Please let us know how you use this publication, if it proves helpful, what other topics you would like to see us focus on and how we can best serve you and your board. We would love to discuss being part of your next Board or Leadership Team retreat, so contact debra@leadingagekansas.org to learn more.
Strategic Thinking
“Exceptional boards allocate time to what matters most and continuously engage in strategic thinking to hone the organization’s direction.” – BoardSource, Twelve Principles of Governance that Power Exceptional Boards
Governance requires spending 75% of our time looking through the front windshield and 25% of our time reflecting in the rear-view mirror. Strategic thinking means understanding trends, reviewing data, learning from the past, identifying patterns and knowing how to apply all of this information to provide organizational direction.
Strategic thinking should be happening at every board meeting, not simply relegated to an annual retreat. This means regular board meeting agendas should be outcomes driven, leverage consent agenda, limit reports, and drive dialogue on challenges and opportunities.
Strategic thinking drives strategic planning and is done in concert with management. One of the most important resources we have is board member perspective – let’s make the best use of it!
Starting the Conversation
- The Source: Twelve Principles of Governance that Power Exceptional Boards from BoardSource
- The Board Role in Strategic Thinking and Planning by Susan Biro for Create the Future
- What is Strategic Thinking? by James Beck for Effective Governance News
- Tapping the Strategic Potential of Boards by Chinta Bhagat, Martin Hirt and Conor Kehoe, McKinsey Quarterly
- Reinvigorating the Board of Directors Through a Dynamic Strategic Thinking Process by Rebecca Neth Townsend of Ziegler
- Rethinking Strategic Planning (webinar) from BoardSource
Tools & Templates
- Strategic Thinking Boards: Ten Essentials from Nelson Strategic Consulting
- How to Create Strategic Thinking Board from Nelson Strategic Consulting
- Strategic Thinking at the Board Level Requires Dedication by Dale West, SmithBucklin
- Preparing for More Effective, Focused, and Strategic Board Meetings from BoardSource
- 21st Century Thinking for a 21st Century World by David Greco and Sylvia Obagi for BoardSource
- What is a Consent Agenda for a Board Meeting? from BoardEffect
- The Consent Agenda from CoreStrategies for Nonprofits
Did you know that LeadingAge Kansas provides consultation services to improve your board’s effectiveness? Contact us to learn more about how we can help you and your board.
“The most serious mistakes are not being made as a result of wrong answers. The true dangerous thing is asking the wrong question.” ~Peter Drucker
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