by Tom Okarma | Feb 29, 2012 | Blog, Board Development, Governance, Leadership
For new board members, lead directors, and board presidents, I recently came across an excellent book. I’d consider it a “must read” and it applies to any board: for profit, nonprofit, secular, faith-based, public, private…whatever. I remember my early days on...
by Tom Okarma | Jan 24, 2012 | Blog, Board Development, Governance, Leadership
It seems to me almost all nonprofits whether faith-based or secular think if they can just hammer out a good Mission/Purpose Statement (What It Does), Vision Statement (What It Will Become), and Values Statement (What It Believes), then they have pretty much got...
by Tom Okarma | Jan 5, 2012 | Blog, Board Development, Governance, Leadership, Strategic Planning
I was recently asked by a friend of mine about the difference between an organization having a board of directors versus a board of trustees. He is trying to determine which model best helps him grow and refocus his small but successful organization. He wants to grow...
by Tom Okarma | Oct 25, 2011 | Blog, Board Development, Governance, Leadership, Strategic Planning
With a tip of the hat to a certain late night TV talk-show host, I have been thinking about what makes a board “good” or “bad” and have come up with a top twenty list that covers a lot of ground. I originally titled this article “Top Five”…then Top Ten…but had to go...
by Tom Okarma | Oct 5, 2011 | Blog, Board Development, Leadership, Strategic Planning
When I led a for-profit company, we used to talk about “creative friction”- a condition whereby people with different opinions on a particular topic were encouraged to voice their opinions and provide evidence to substantiate their positions. It was very helpful in...
