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The Board Relationship Can Help Save a Leader From Themselves
Brian Kreeger 1:16 • Jul 29, 2021
Many times an executive leader
is their own worst enemy. That leader needs saved from themselves, and their accountability structure is in the perfect position to move them in that direction. But the board must find themselves in a relationship with the executive that will allow them to do just that….save the leader from themselves.
Believe it or not, the relationship between the board and the executive starts before they are even hired.
As the board sits around the table working to determine the profile of their ultimate candidate, the considerations are things like education, past experience, community involvement, standing in the community, expertise in the particular mission, fundraising potential, demonstrated ability to create and maintain culture, and general personal stability. This is typical, and each one of those points is very important. They are all musts.
But as has been stressed in previous articles, I am imploring boards to go the extra step. Perhaps we should also push the envelope on the personal side of life. Although some candidates will be scared off by that, it is okay.
What you are looking for is someone who has the depth of character that allows them to be the same person in your organization as they are at home or in other settings- a person who has a solidly locked-in identity. If they protect that, it may be an indicator that they are not your ideal candidate.
As a board is looking for their ideal candidate and developing their executive profile, the board is in the driver’s seat. This needs to be taken seriously, and a board should take their time—be wary of those speed bumps on the road.
(This article is the sixteenth in a series that focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at
briankreeger.com.
In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my upcoming book,
The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders.)
Too many times a board is so eager to fill a position and get on with business as usual they rush the process, cut corners, and choose the wrong candidate. Sometimes a board will put someone in a position because they are the easiest one to get up and running fast. This is not a wise decision-making process.
Asking questions around a person’s holistic health should not be off the table.
What I am advocating for, in the interest of the health of your organization, is for the board to have the courage to probe areas of a candidate’s personal life. A board should look for indications that they can build a solid relationship with the executive and that the candidate not only possesses strength and ability, but also humility.
There are certainly things you cannot legally ask a candidate, but there are many you can.
So, asking about personal interests outside of the job and what they do with their time should be probed. You are looking to uncover the leader’s mindset and personal state.
In a missional Christian organization, asking what their church involvement is and about affiliations is relevant. Asking if they attend a small accountability group is a good question. Asking about life challenges and how they handled them—now we’re talking. Inevitably, questions like these will lead to further discussion on topics relevant to your Christian mission.
Time and time again I have heard people talk about how proper vetting of leadership is so important. The problem is that many times they are talking about this after a leadership fall.
Proper vetting
of a potential executive by asking personal questions in a gentle, caring way during the interview process also has a few side effects. First, it tells the candidate something about the character of the board and the organization. It also shows a part of the character of the organization that you want incorporated as part of the culture of the organization when they carry out their duties.
It will communicate to them they are cared about on a personal level, beyond the facts and figures that you no doubt will have reviewed as part of the job description review. This personal interest and connection is very attractive to your ideal candidate and may be the reason they choose your organization.
And this same attitude should be seen in the on-boarding of the new candidate. The board needs to develop a deliberate, purposeful on-boarding process headed up by at least one board member.
A solid, healthy, and communicative relationship starts before the hiring of an executive. Do not take it for granted.
The type of relationship developed
at the beginning of an executive’s tenure sets the tone for future interactions. While this may seem inappropriate to some and uncomfortable to others, starting off in a position where the executive senses the board is “for them” in more than a corporate fashion can make or break the organization. Remember, a leadership fall always ends up in the board's lap. So why not start out with an investment in the relationship?
In a later article I will write about the appropriate involvement of the board in the personal life of a nonprofit executive.
Typically, executives have gotten to their position, especially in a nonprofit, because they are passionate and driven about the mission of the organization. They want to make a difference and are willing to do whatever it takes to make it happen. As I wrote in a previous article, the organization becomes a large part of the executive’s identity.
The executive difficulties that can turn into triggers for a fall are many times born initially by their well-intentioned motivation to improve as many lives as possible. Again, they will stop at nothing to make it happen.
As part of the nature of most executives, this focused desire can cause a leader to move things that were once their focus, and made them who they are, to a blur in their peripheral vision. The things that are reduced to that blur can include close family, spiritual focus, and healthy habits and affiliations.
Remember, these are the things that developed the individual into a leader that had the qualities a board of directors desired in an executive. You hired that person. It is the board’s responsibility to aid in the preservation of that person, sometimes saving them from themselves.
In a previous article I described the situation in our boardroom the day I revealed I was involved in a three-month emotional affair. Remember how the one board member looked at me and asked, “What part of your issue did [our organization] play?"
After a few years of healing following my fall, I went back to that same board member to inquire why they asked that question. Their answer: “Because I had sensed for months that something was not right, my question was shaded with a bit of introspection as to what we, and more pointedly me, as a board could have done to help you from falling into sin.”
All along, the board could have been consciously and proactively saving me from myself. Does that make it their fault? Absolutely not. But they could have helped.
They could have Courageously Asked the right questions of me. Instead of simply accepting my answer of “good” or “very good” when they asked me how I was doing, they could have probed further and followed their gut instinct. They could have asked the right questions of my wife and those closest to me.
Some of those questions may have been: How is church going? How is your marriage? Tell me about your relationship with your kids? Are you still in that men’s group? How many hours are you working? How is your spiritual walk? Tell me about your pressure points? How can I pray for you? That list is never ending.
Notice that none of those questions find their basis in the job description. Just asking the questions is not good enough because any leader can cover up their struggles, and they are inclined to do so. Ask follow-up questions. Probe.
I was driven and willing to sacrifice anything for the success of the ministry. Sure, I would put it on God’s calling, but we humans sometimes take things to their extreme, way beyond where God intends us to go. That was me.
So, one question might be: “Would the leader listen?” Maybe, maybe not. Pride is a crazy thing. This should not be a consideration. A board has the responsibility to broach the topic and express concerns, no matter the origin of the concern. If the executive does not receive the board’s concerns, the board, in a worst-case scenario, must use their authority to make sure they do.
These things are so much easier if there is a relationship based on trust and care for the executive. A relationship that starts even before the executive is hired, a relationship that must be coddled with the greatest intention and the greatest attention.
Saving a leader from themselves is an art and takes just the right relationship -developed over time, before any issues- in order for both to walk away happy and respected. A board member cannot just go to an executive and declare that there is going to be an improved relationship between them and the executive.
Boards, it’s time to talk about it, and act.
Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at
briankreeger.com. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My Story) to my upcoming book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders.
Brian@briankreeger.com
#Leadership Fall #Leadership Survival #Nonprofit Relationships #Proactive Approach #Leadership Struggles #Leadership Battles #Christian Executive Leader #Christian Leader #Board of Directors #Courageous Ask #Board Relationship
Executives -pastors or nonprofit executives in our context- are put on a pedestal. It’s not that the typical person necessarily believes they belong there or desires to put them there. But it is human nature that this happens. The general public often places much higher expectations on leaders than they do on themselves. Sometimes it is appropriate, and the leader has put themselves in that position. In some cases, it is simply scriptural. For instance, James 3 points out that those who teach will be judged more strictly, thereby heightening the expectations of those who lead and teach. But what about when we accept, and enact, those elevated expectations and forget the humanity of our leaders? Often a community heaps on a leader the expectation that they are to perform with the perfection of Jesus and not simply be a Jesus follower and disciple just like them, but with a unique calling and heightened responsibility. Too many times when a leader shows human imperfection, the respect we have for them is damaged. Leaders fall under strict judgment, and we forget they are no less fallible than us. The imperfection they have colors any positive experience we would have had with them otherwise. While most of us acknowledge this strict, hypocritical judgment and recognize it as not being how we want to treat our leaders, it is a difficult battle to fight in our own attitudes and minds. No matter who the leader is, they are not Jesus. But please allow me to reverently make some comparisons. (This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders. )
You are the community, no matter what formal role you play in a particular organization, or if you play any role at all. My blog articles typically focus on the roles the leader and the board have in preventing the fall of Christian nonprofit leaders. But I contend that the community that exists around organizational leaders and boards has a role as well. In fact, a community’s role can many times be much bigger. My next few blog articles will focus on the role of the community in preventing the fall of Christian nonprofit leaders. (This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders. )
