For Board chairs of public agencies – an opportunity for expert coaching online

During this time, as everyone is sheltering in place and focusing on friends and family, we at LRI are doing the same. FaceTime and Zoom are helping us to keep in touch. And for those of us who have leadership responsibilities, as elected or appointed government officials, we must also stay focused on our mission of service to our communities.

For those who are chairs or presidents of governing boards, this is an especially critical time. Your communication with your management team, your fellow board members, and your stakeholders will play a vital role in how your agency performs during this time of crisis.

At LRI, we stand ready to help. We offer our one-on-one coaching via videoconference to help you work through current issues to make sure your Board is functioning at top effectiveness. This is critical to providing support and direction to your professional staff who are working hard to continue delivering essential services to your constituents and stakeholders. Here are some things you might consider:

• How well is my board communicating with and providing direction to management?
• How can I make virtual meetings as effective as possible?
• Are our meeting agendas organized optimally given the current crisis?
• How can I get the most engagement and productivity from my board members?
• How do I navigate requirements to have open meetings while adhering to health protocols?

At the same time, this is an opportunity to take stock of your leadership skills and strategies. You may step back to assess how you are marshaling your team to be most effective going forward after this crisis.

• How would I describe the existing board culture; are there areas for improvement?
• How about our governance model; can improvements be made?
• Do we need to adjust the strategic directions we have set for our agency?
• What more can we as board members be doing to contribute to the agency mission?

One-on-one video coaching can help you work on these and other issues facing your agency. It can be a timely and efficient means to tease out strategies that can help you and your team be most effective now and in the future.

Send us a message to schedule a free preliminary call or Zoom meeting

Practice leadership:

Bill Slaton is an LRI senior consultant specializing in board governance. He is an advocate and facilitator of excellence in board performance.

Call or text Bill at (916) 715-3675 to schedule a preliminary call, or email [email protected].

For 16 years he served as an elected board member of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District that provides electric services to 1.5 million Northern California customers. He served three terms as President of the Board. During his tenure, Bill chaired the Policy Makers Council, a national group of 40 elected public utility board members who advocate for federal legislative and regulatory solutions to benefit electric consumers.

Bill also served from 2012 to 2019 as a gubernatorial appointee to the governing board of the California Public Employees Retirement System, the largest public pension fund in America as well as the second-largest provider of health care plans after the federal government. During his tenure, Bill chaired the Governance Committee, the Performance, Compensation & Talent Management Committee, and the Investment Committee

Prior to his leadership roles on these boards, he served on two publicly traded commercial bank boards as well as on various non-profit boards including nine years on the Sacramento Public Television Board including service as board chair.

Bill Slaton