When Board Committees Are 'Sacred Cows'
I once encountered an organization facing some challenges with an advisory council made up
mostly of former board members and high donors. While members' interest and
engagement in the group was high, its overall purpose and productivity appeared
to be flagging. It seemed that the energy and staff time being put into the
committee's operations were exceeding outputs, which were also quite redundant
with other work. This was raising questions about whether or not the committee
should keep going.
When I thought about the issue, it occurred to me that
I held a position that arguably flew in the face of best practices -
particularly BoardSource's guidelines on advisory councils. Based on
what I knew of the organization, I suggested that perhaps the value of
fostering a sense of belonging may be reason enough for the committee to exist
- even if it had little to do. I felt that because this group was a bit of a
"sacred cow," trying to innovate and repurpose it might need to take precedence over trying to sunset it.
I think this example illustrates how best practices can
often be at odds with the way organizations establish and maintain their
committees. In fact, I often wonder how much our well-established platonic
ideals of nonprofit board committee structures really help organizations as
they try to navigate their own unique circumstances.
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| Photo: Dudarev Mikhail / Adobe Stock |
Clinging to entrenched committee structures is a notable way
that nonprofit boards can get stuck in a "we've always done it this
way" mentality. While best practice exemplars can certainly provide a
useful roadmap for getting out of it, I also believe organizations should
carefully consider the underlying reasons for their sacred cows before they
start a metaphorical barbecue. In order to do this, it's important to put the concept of
best practices into perspective and analyze the specific needs and constraints
driving the board's decision-making.
Best practice literature primarily helps to benchmark against what's most common among similar organizations, identifying what
kinds of committees exist and what they generally do. It also provides important guidance on legalities surrounding a committee's role in the
organization's governance. For example, the practice of approving written
charters is widely considered necessary for boards to properly delegate duties
and responsibilities to committees. Not doing so might enable a committee to act outside its intended scope or (heaven forbid) undermine the board's authority. Clearly, we need some established standards to keep
committees relevant, functional and above board.
That said, most committees' raison d'etre and
assigned duties will depend on more specific factors than can reasonably be accounted for in the literature, such as:
- Size of
board, staff and budget
- Strength
of board/staff partnership
- Politics
and culture of the board and extended volunteer leadership
- Degree
to which members/stakeholders are engaged in the nonprofit
- Internal
resources for addressing certain issues
- Gaps in
experience or subject matter expertise on the board
- History and tradition embedded in existing practices
These are just a few elements boards should seek to
understand when considering significant changes in their committee structure,
even if only to generate awareness around the likely radial impact of potential solutions.
Ultimately, when there is a clear understanding of how and why a committee is established (and esteemed), it becomes easier to make sense of its' value and identify workable
mechanisms for change. Such changes may not perfectly align with best
practices, but that doesn't necessarily mean they won't be the best approach
for the organization.
What challenges have you faced when navigating your
nonprofit's committee structure? What role did best practices play when you
have considered changes to existing committees? How did the organization's unique circumstances influence decisions and outcomes?
Rachel Miller-Bleich, MA, CAE is a nonprofit governance consultant and owner of MillerBleich Consulting, LLC. To learn more, visit www.millerbleichconsulting.com.
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