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When I became the acting president of Hamilton College
in 1999, I already knew a lot about the college. I am a
1996Hamilton graduate, the parent of a former student, and Ihave
served for 12 years on the colleges governing board.Still, when
Hamilton President Eugene Tobin took a much-deserved sabbatical, I
learned more about Hamilton duringmy six months in the presidency
than in all my previoustime associated with the college. Much of
what I learnedwill make me and, I expect, my fellow board members
better in the future.
An unusual level of alumni involvement distinguishes
Hamilton. Typically, more than 55 percent of alumnicontribute
every year to the annual fund, and more thana third volunteer to
recruit students, raise funds, counselundergraduates about careers,
provide internships, conductalumni events, and participate in other
activities. As is thecase at other colleges, Hamiltons board sets
the tone forfinancial and volunteer support.
Yet despite this high level of alumni involvement and myown
active participation with my alma mater, I had asuperficial
understanding about many important facetsof the college and
wondered whether my fellow board
members did as well. Naturally, I recognize it is unrealisticto
expect that board members who typically visit thecampus just three
or four times a year will ever have thesame breadth and depth of
knowledge as the presidentand senior administrators who are charged
with the dailyoperations of the institution.
A New Understanding of the CollegeSoon after I became president,
the impact of policydecisions became clear to me much more so
thanwhen I was a board member. For example, deciding to
admit an additional 20 to 30 students from the waitinglist or
planning for a larger class, though attractive from afinancial
point of view, had significant ramifications in theday-to-day life
of the campus. Admitting more studentsmeans hiring more staff
members. Where would we findadditional housing? And if the new
hires were adjuncts,how could we be certain they would be as
qualified and ascommitted to the institution as full-time faculty
members?This level of detail rarely makes it to the boardroom,
butas president, I could see how a tempting financial solutionmight
create an irritant in campus life.
My experience as a college president has made me much
more aware of the nuances of board decision making. Manyissues
that boards are asked to consider require muchbroader scrutiny.
Switching roles for six months taught mefive fundamental lessons
that may help boards and boardmembers become more effective.
1. Balance the membership of board membercommittees.Hamiltons
board of directors, like many governingboards, consists
disproportionately of business executives,investors, and successful
entrepreneurs. Their acumen is
in finance and in running a business, so they tend to bemost
interested in the issues fund-raising, endowmentperformance, and
investments with which they are mostfamiliar and where results are
tangible. They tend not tobe so comfortable with the other
components that make acollege successful such as its staff,
programs, and facilities.
The tendency among board members to gravitate towardfinance is
understandable. After all, board membershave a fiduciary
responsibility to the college, and giventodays fiscal pressures, no
board can be blamed for beingpreoccupied with an organizations
assets. But a balanced
budget and a growing endowment are only two measures ofan
organizations health.
It is equally important that all board committees have
theappropriate firepower if the mission of the institution isto be
fulfilled. The committee on board members shouldlook carefully at
the distribution of talent and influenceamong the various standing
committees to ensure that everyfunction has an important voice at
the boardroom table.
2. Seek, within limits, close encounters withleaders of the
organization.In my six months as president, I met and spent time
withmost of the faculty, the swimming coach, the chair of
thechemistry department, the director of the career center -people
board members typically would not encounter. Yetthe insights and
opinions of such individuals can give boardmembers a much broader
understanding of an institution.
Recognizing this untapped resource, we restructured
boardweekends at Hamilton to facilitate even greater
informalinteraction between the board and various college
A Board Members Stint in the Chief Executives Chair
DO WE NEED COMMITTEES?
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Determining an effective structure for the board is no
longer as straightforward as it used to be. The traditionalboard
with numerous committees today is only one of theoptions. Many
boards are looking for more flexible waysof managing the workload
while adjusting to the boardsevolving needs. Here are some
alternatives for delegating or not delegating various tasks to
specific committees.
Role of a committeeCommittees can be a practical way to
structure andmanage the boards work. Sometimes a smaller groupcan
be more focused and efficient in dealing with issuesthan the full
board. A committee is created to providecounseling and advice for
the board or to handle a taskthat belongs in the boards agenda. Its
recommendationsneed to be approved by the board, but the board is
notobligated to go with committee suggestions. Committeesare more
effective when their charter and scope of work isclearly defined by
the board.
Traditional committee structureMost boards consider committees
an essential part ofthe board structure. Traditionally the bylaws
definethe standing committees and their roles. To be more
flexible, the bylaws could authorize the board to formcommittees
as necessary and allow policies to define thedetails. According to
a BoardSource survey, the mostcommon standing committees are
executive, finance,and development. In addition, boards can form ad
hoccommittees or task forces that are formed to carry out aspecific
task. These also need a job description.
Qualities of an effective committeeA streamlined committee
structure makes board workeasier. Involving board members in
committee activitiesis a direct way of taking advantage of
everybodys specialskills and expertise. An effective committee has
A clear job description and dened goals A chair who is able to
involve all members in the
committee work Members who are committed and willing to spend
the
needed time to accomplish their tasks A sense of being part of
the full board and not working
in isolation
An understanding of time constraints and deadlines
An understanding that it does not make decisions;rather it
advises and recommends
An evaluation process to assess its own achievements
Task forces or ad hoc committeesSome boards do not form any
standing committees,rather a need is identified, and a task force
or an ad hoccommittee is formed to carry out the necessary
charge.Each task force is unique, so the answers to questionslike
How often to meet, Who should serve, How big thegroup should be,
will vary. Task forces allow the boardto concentrate only on
pressing issues and avoid wastingboard members time on activities
that are not of strategicimportance. Examples of these work groups
would be abylaws task force or a search committee.
Zero-based committee structureTo push efficiency even further,
some boards start eachyear with a clean slate. All committees are
abolishedautomatically and only the ones that are still needed
willbe re-created. An evaluation process allows the board
toreassess the composition of the committee and redirect thefocus
of the working group if necessary. Benefits of this
approach: Stagnation can be avoided. The board is exible and
future-oriented. Unnecessary committees will be of the past.
Leadership opportunities are more frequent. Leadership changes are
not threatening.
Outsiders as committee membersVery infrequently does a board
possess all the necessaryskills and expertise. Some organizations
choose to inviteoutsiders with specific contacts and knowledge to
serveon committees or task forces. Committee members do nothave the
same liabilities and pressures as full-fledged boardmembers. It is
an excellent way to bring new talents andperspectives to the board.
It is an excellent way for busyprofessionals to serve an
organization of their choice. Otherbenets include: No need to
increase the board size; formerboard members can stay active as
committee members; andfuture board members can be cultivated into
board service
Do We Need Committees?
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