Can A Board Be a Great Team?

I am preparing to give a talk at SAIS’ Annual Conference about helping boards operate as teams rather than groups of people who periodically come together to discuss the school. 

Most boards are developed by identifying people in the school community who have the skills to advance school priorities. It is not surprising that they do not operate as a team. Indeed, it would be like putting multiple ingredients on a table and expecting them to transform into a four-star meal. Teams, like fine meals, need to be intentionally developed. 

I define a high functioning team as 

A small group of people who work interdependently to achieve an important mutually understood purpose and possess the knowledge, skills, experience and desire to accomplish the task.

In order to operate as a team, the board needs to spend time understanding its purpose and how each member can help achieve that purpose. It also must determine specific goals to help it accomplish the task.  A board retreat is a good time to specify the group's purpose and goals. 

High functioning teams tend to be small. Research indicates that once the number of people in a team exceeds eight or nine, the ability to work interdependently becomes increasingly difficult. How can boards of twenty or more act as small teams?

Two effective structures to create smaller teams in a larger team exist--committees and breakout groups. Committees are already utilized by most boards. Committees, which are assigned a specific school function to oversee should be assigned specific tasks, related to the board’s purpose and goals, to accomplish. Committees, which can more easily act as a team, should present their recommendations to the board, and unless the suggestions are arbitrary and capricious, the board ought to approve them. This operational mode empowers committees and allows real teamwork to occur in a smaller setting. Committee meetings tend to occur outside the board meeting. 

Few boards regularly utilize small breakout groups during the board meeting. We have all seen the dynamic when an important topic is raised in a board meeting with many members. A few people speak, sometimes incessantly, and most members are silent. The best decisions cannot be reached that way as it is important to hear from all the diverse views around the board table. Breaking into small breakout groups allows that to happen. 

Each group should consider the issue at hand ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard, and all opinions are considered. Once each working group has reached a conclusion, they report back to the board enabling the board to consider more views before reaching a decision. This leads to better outcomes. 

As you work to make your board effective, remember to break the board into smaller units so every voice is heard and all members are engaged and feel valuable.