Board Cafe, January 14, 2000 (fwd)

Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2000 08:53:13 -0300 (ADT)
From: Paul A Falvo <pfalvo@chebucto.ns.ca>
To: Sustainable Maritimes <sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca>
Precedence: bulk
Return-Path: <sust-mar-mml-owner@chebucto.ns.ca>

next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects


This is a sample from another mailing list that might interest sust-mar
subscribers. See below for subscription instructions.

~paul :)

_________________________________________________________________________
Paul A. Falvo	                                             902-454-9573
Barrister & Solicitor					    Morris Bureau

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 16:59:18 -0800
From: boardcafe@compasspoint.org

Board Cafe

The Electronic Newsletter Exclusively for Members of Nonprofit 
Boards of Directors

Short enough to read over a cup of coffee, the Board Cafe offers 
a menu of ideas, information, opinion, news, and resources to 
help board members give and get the most out of board service. 
Co-published by CompassPoint Nonprofit Services (formerly the 
Support Center for Nonprofit Management) and the National Center 
for Nonprofit Boards.  Executive Chef / Writer: Jan Masaoka. 
January 14, 2000. Vol. 4, No. 1

A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF US.  I'm also happy to announce that 
one of the Board Cafe's co-publishers-the Support 
Center/NDC-has changed its organizational name to CompassPoint 
Nonprofit Services.  At CompassPoint we think this new name 
helps complete the merger which created our current organization, 
and also represents our commitment to helping nonprofits find 
their own bearings, map their own futures, and lead change in 
their communities.  I hope the Board Cafe is the kind of 
practical, high quality tool that reflects CompassPoint's 
mission.  (For more see our website at 
<http://www.compasspoint.org>.  In a future issue I'll 
share some of the thrills and chills of changing an 
organization's name.) - Jan Masaoka

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 

BOARD CAFE READERS ROCK!
Wow . . . 1,020 readers responded to the Board Cafe Readers 
Survey.  Here are some of the findings:  There are Board Cafe 
readers in all 50 US states and in 14 countries.  The average 
reader is on 1.7 nonprofit boards, and more than half of you are 
board officers.  Two thirds of you pass along the Board Cafe to 
at least one other person, usually to seven others (example: 
executive directors and board presidents subscribe and pass the 
Board Cafe out at board meetings).  Nearly all of you took the 
time (thank you!) to suggest topics for future issues and make 
"thumbs up" and "thumbs down" comments.  Everyone seems to like 
Board Cafe's length and short items, and your enthusiasm was very 
much appreciated by all of us who work on it.  Some sample 
comments:
"I love the brevity of the Board Cafe and all the wonderful 
suggestions . . . gets us thinking."
"When we conducted our ED evaluation, we used the model in the 
Board Cafe as the basis."
"I appreciate that there's always a touch of humor." "I like the 
reader submissions."
"More international content."  "Can you try to address Canadian 
issues, too?"
"I've never been a board member before, and I find all of it 
useful."
"Thanks for keeping fax as an option [for subscribing]." 
And how do Board Cafe readers take their coffee?  27% take it 
black, 21% with sugar and cream, 20% with cream only, only 4% 
with sugar only, and 24% of you don't drink coffee at all.  In 
the coming months we'll try to incorporate many of the 
suggestions and comments into the Board Cafe's content.  Thanks 
so much to all of you for your responses and your thoughts.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 

GO TO A BOARD MEETING, BUY EGGS
Hidden Villa, an environmental education nonprofit in Silicon 
Valley, sells eggs from their hens at board meetings at $2/dozen.  
Board members not only enjoy eating the eggs, but it gives them a 
small gift they can give others that's also a conversation 
starter about Hidden Villa.  Does your organization sell small 
items made by clients or through a gift shop?  If so, consider 
choosing a few to make available for board members to purchase at 
the next board meeting.  

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 

FREE BOOKLET ON DOMESTIC PARTNER BENEFITS AND MORE
If you've been thinking that your organization should offer 
domestic partner benefits to staff, but have questions about 
containing costs and what criteria should be used, there's a 
terrific free resource from the Working Group on Funding Lesbian 
and Gay Issues: "Expanding Opportunities: A Grantmaker's Guide to 
Workplace Policies for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Staff."  
Although its main audience is foundations, the excellent analysis 
and sample policies are applicable to most nonprofits, and 
address issues related to heterosexual staff as well.  Especially 
useful are the sample policies from Chevron, IBM, the MacArthur 
Foundation and others on equal employment, sexual harassment, and 
affirmative action.  This 52-page booklet is free from the 
Working Group:  (email) <info@workinggroup.org> or (website) 
<http://www.workinggroup.org>.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 

This month's "Main Course" at the Board Cafe:

Sample Conflict of Interest Policy

by Jan Masaoka

At some point, most boards confront tension or conflict between 
the interests of the organization and the interests of an 
individual board member.  For example, if your organization is 
hiring a new bookkeeper and the board president recommends his 
sister, other board members may (and should) question whether 
this is appropriate.  On one hand, the board president's sister 
is an experienced bookkeeper who, because of her personal 
connection to the organization, will be particularly committed to 
the work.  On the other hand, the executive director may be 
reluctant to supervise the board president's sister. 

Conflicts of interest are difficult to weigh and balance because 
the relationships between board members and the community also 
are a part of the contribution that board members make to the 
agency.  If the organization is buying a new computer, for 
example, and a board member owns a computer store, the 
organization may well benefit from discounts and extra service by 
buying the computer at her store.  It would be a mistake to 
prohibit working with board members as vendors.  Similarly, board 
members who are also clients of the organization can be 
tremendously helpful in ensuring that a client perspective is 
brought into decision-making, but a client board member may find 
himself in a difficult position if the agency is considering 
eliminating a service that is used by very few clients other than 
himself.  In many cases, the perceived conflict of interest may 
simply "feel wrong" to some board members, although it might be 
within legal boundaries.

Three simple safeguards can go a long way towards preventing and 
avoiding conflicts of interest.  First, establish a policy 
related to conflict of interest which is signed by all board 
members when they join the board.  The statement can be a simple 
declaration or require detailed information about the board 
members' financial interests.  Second, establish disclosure as a 
normal practice.  Board members should find it customary for 
someone to announce, for example, "I have started to date the 
Clinic Director and, as a result, feel that I must resign from 
the board.  I would like to continue as a member of the 
Fundraising Committee, but not as a board member."  In another 
situation a board president might say, "This next agenda item 
relates to joining a collaboration with other children's 
agencies.  I'm going to ask board members who are also on one of 
these other boards to identify themselves and participate 
in the discussion, but I will excuse them from the room for part 
of the discussion and for the vote."  Such disclosures should be 
recorded in the meeting's minutes.

Third, if major purchases (for either goods or services) are 
involved, obtain competitive written bids to ensure that prices 
and product are comparable if a board member stands to benefit 
(financially) from a particular decision.  A board member of an 
environmental organization proposed having her bank offer an 
affinity card to members.  Before making any decisions, the staff 
invited two other banks to submit proposals for such an 
arrangement.

Perhaps even more than written policies, board and staff 
leadership must establish by example and attitude an atmosphere 
of personal integrity.  Some situations may need only a brief, 
informal comment to maintain that climate (example: "I know it's 
only $24 but it's important to keep our finances straight").  In 
others, a decision may be delayed because of the need to ensure 
that it has been made in the organization's best 
interests.  Each of us, by our daily words and actions, 
contributes to a culture of integrity and 
responsibility.

Sample Conflict of Interest Policy

The standard of behavior at the ____ Organization is that all 
staff, volunteers, and board members scrupulously avoid conflicts 
of interest between the interests of the ____ Organization on one 
hand, and personal, professional, and business interests on the 
other.  This includes avoiding potential and actual conflicts of 
interest, as well as perceptions of conflicts of interest.

I understand that the purposes of this policy are to protect the 
integrity of the ____ Organization's decision-making process, to 
enable our constituencies to have confidence in our integrity, 
and to protect the integrity and reputations of volunteers, staff 
and board members.  Upon or before election, hiring or 
appointment, I will make a full, written disclosure of interests, 
relationships, and holdings that could potentially result in a 
conflict of interest.  This written disclosure will be kept on 
file and I will update it as appropriate.

In the course of meetings or activities, I will disclose any 
interests in a transaction or decision where I (including my 
business or other nonprofit affiliations), my family and/or my 
significant other, employer, or close associates will receive a 
benefit or gain.  After disclosure, I understand that I will be 
asked to leave the room for the discussion and will not be 
permitted to vote on the question.  

I understand that this policy is meant to supplement good 
judgment, and I will respect its spirit as well as its wording. 

Signed:  						Date:

This section on conflict of interest is taken from "Boardroom 
Dancing", a handbook for nonprofit boards written by Jan Masaoka 
and Jude Kaye of CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, available 
February 2000.

You are reading the BOARD CAFE, published monthly by CompassPoint 
Nonprofit Services (formerly the Support Center for Nonprofit 
Management)  and the National Center for Nonprofit Boards.  
CompassPoint: 706 Mission Street, 5th Floor, San Francisco, CA 
94103; (phone) 415-541-9000; (fax) 415-541-7708; San Jose office: 
1922 The Alameda, San Jose, CA 95126; (phone) 408-248-9505; (fax) 
408-248-9504; (e-mail) <boardcafe@compasspoint.org>    (website)  
<http://www.compasspoint.org>.  National Center for Nonprofit 
Boards: 1828 L Street NW, Ste. 900, Washington, D.C. (phone) 202-
452-6262  (email) <info@ncnb.org>; (website) 
<http://www.ncnb.org> We welcome your comments and contributions 
to the BOARD CAFE.  If you would like your own free fax 
subscription to the BOARD CAFE, contact the Board Cafe at any of 
the numbers listed above. If you would like to have the BOARD 
CAFE delivered to you free via electronic mail, send an e-mail 
message to boardcafe@compasspoint.org and in the body of the 
message type SUBSCRIBE BOARD CAFE. To unsubscribe to the BOARD 
CAFE,  type UNSUBSCRIBE BOARD CAFE in the body of the message, or 
fax your request to 415-541-7708. The Board Cafe's e-mail/fax 
list is not rented, exchanged, or given to any other entity. 
(c) 2000 CompassPoint Nonprofit Services/National Center for 
Nonprofit Boards



-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
The preceding message was posted on Sustainable Maritimes (sust-mar)
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

A word from our lawyers ...

Don't forget ... COPYRIGHT material, such as newspaper/magazine articles
cannot be posted on sust-mar without the owner's permission. It's against
the law. CROSS-POSTINGS (messages from other lists) are also discouraged.

In either case, why not tell us something about the issue in your own
words? Or ... send a clipping along with the URL where the original can be
found, or directions how to join the list it came from?

Takes a few more minutes, but makes for a more interesting sust-mar ... :)


next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects