New Competencies for Agile Boards

Duty of Foresight

Cathi Hight

• President of Hight Performance Group

• Developer of The Member Retention Kit

and A New Approach to Tiered Membership

• National instructor for the U.S. Chamber

Institute for Organization Management since 2004

• Previous positions: SVP of Growth Strategy & Investor Relations for the Greater Austin Chamber, VP of Operations for the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, Regional Manager of Dole Foods and for Dean Foods, FastTrac Entrepreneurship Program Manager for the Kauffman Foundation

• Is a member of the:

▪ Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE)

▪ American Society of Association Executives (ASAE)

▪ Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)

2Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Patrick Sullivan

• President and CEO of the Halifax Chamber of Commerce.

• Avid runner and marathon competitor.

• Over 30 years of marketing and general management experience.

• Previous positions: CEO of the Nova Scotia Tourism Agency, President of Workopolis.com, General Manager of Indigo.ca.

• Started his career at Proctor and Gamble in Toronto.

Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards 3

You will explore:

• Drivers of change and the need for chambers to practice foresight.

• How a Board Competency Matrix ensures the right mix of skills, knowledge and member representation.

• Traits of agile boards and how to develop a Duty of Foresight to navigate your Chamber’s future.

Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards 4

THE NEED FOR FORESIGHT

Drivers of Change

Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards 5

Associations Study the Impact of Change

• In 2015, ACCE (Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives) explored 9 influences shaping the roles of chambers of commerce

• In 2018, ASAE (American Society of Association Executives) released Foresight Works to help associations explore 41 drivers of change and their impact on members

6Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Drivers of Change Fall into 6 Trend Categories

7Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Social Demographics Trends

“The Rise of the Minority”

• Drivers of Change

– The Aging World

– Next Gen Professionals

– Immigration-Driven Demography

– Empowered Women (the Future is Female)

– Households of One

– Higher Education 3.0 (new modes of learning)

– Micro Learning

– Mentoring 2.0 (informal)

– Socializing Reshaped

(digital interactions,

online tribes)

8Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Workforce and Workplace Trends“Work Redefined”

• Drivers of Change– Automating Work (machine learning, robotics, spread of blockchain)

– Human-Machine Cooperation (jobs complementing technology)

– More Human Humans (the need for EQ)

– Bifurcated Workforce (employees/gig workers)

– Diversity & Inclusion (driven by demographic changes, values and YPs)

– 21st Century Guilds for gig workers

– Reputation by the Numbers

©Hight Performance Group 9Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Data and Technology Trends

“Anticipatory Intelligence”

• Drivers of Change

– Cyber-Security (digital security)

– Dark Data

– Big Data Analytics, Nichification

– Personalized AI (artificial intelligence)

– Predictive Analytics

– Blockchain Platforms (enable

trustless transactions)

– IOT (Internet of Things)

– Fast Data (real-time

decision-making)

10Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Economic Trends

“Power Shifts”

• Drivers of Change

– Cartel Capitalism (market domination

by a few large companies)

– Trade in Transition

– Global Power Shifts

– The Stagnation Economy

– The Sharing Economy (peer-to-peer

exchange of goods and services)

11Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Society & Political Trends

“Persuasive Eco-Systems”

• Drivers of Change– Algorithmic Politics

– Declining Trust in institutions

– Splintered Society (self-segregation along

divides politically, economically, socially)

– Ethical Consumption (values-driven

spending)

– American Inequality

– Philanthropy Reshaped

– Shifting Terrain for Advocacy (national

gridlock will drive policy efforts toward

state and city governments)

– Transparent Organizational Ethics

Duty of Foresight_New Competncies for Agile Boards 12

Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Drivers of Change Impact Communities

SocialDynamics

“The Rise of the Minority”

Workplace &

Workforce

“Work Redefined”

Society & Politics

Economy Data & Technology

• The Aging World• Next Gen

Professionals• Immigration-Driven

Demographics• Empowered Women• Households of One• Higher Education 3.0• Micro Learning• Socializing Reshaped

• Algorithmic Politics• Declining Trust in

Institutions• Splintered Society

(polarization)• Ethical Consumption• American Inequality• Philanthropy

Reshaped• Shifting Terrain for

Advocacy• Transparent

Organizational Ethics

• Cyber security• Dark Data• Big Data Analytics,

Nichification• Personalized AI• Blockchain Platforms• IOT (internet of

things)• Fast Data

• Cartel Capitalism (M&A)

• Trade in Transition• Global Power Shifts• The Stagnation

Economy (decline of rapid growth)

• The Sharing Economy

• Automating Work• Human-Machine

Cooperation• More Human

Humans• Bifurcated workforce• Diversity & inclusion• 21st Century Guilds• Reputation by the

Numbers

The Future of Membership

Models13Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Chambers of the Future Require Effective Leadership

• Keep awareness about drivers of change and how they could impact communities and businesses.

• Identify risks that could lead to policy and environmental changes.

• Anticipate how to serve members and the community.

• Move from Sense-Making (why we’ve done things in the past and currently) to Meaning-Making (consider how to meet future needs) and use Decision-Making to decide what to keep and how to capitalize on new or potential opportunities.

Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

MOVE FROM CONSTITUENCY TO COMPETENCIES

Board Competency Matrix

15Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Using a Board Competency Matrix

• Build a board of directors strategically to benefit the organization based on skills, experiences, acumen, behaviors and representation.

• Consider the ideal mix of resources, backgrounds, experiences, community connections and other characteristics your Board needs to navigate challenges and the direction of the organization.

• How do you ensure diversity that breeds varying opinions, approaches, attitudes, and strategies?

16Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

• Halifax, Nova Scotia is a city of 430,000 people and growing at a rate of +2.0% fueled by international immigration, interprovincial migration and rural to urban migration

• The Halifax Chamber of Commerce can trace our roots back to 1750, one year after the founding of Halifax by the British

• In 1995 four chambers combined to create the greater Halifax Chamber of Commerce

• In 2008 we recognized our constituency based Board model was not providing us with the insight and strategic guidance we required

Halifax Chamber of Commerce

Our Board of Directors

• Until 2008 we had a constituency based board:

o Members who represented specific interest groups and particular regions( 4 cities)

• Suggestion to change to competency based board with members based on skills or expertise required to support the organization for the future.

• What else did we need to consider?

o Diversity/Inclusion

o Gender

o Immigration

Was this a welcome change?

• Many board members felt the previous board selection process was the way to provide the best representation for members.

• Board delegated research to Human Resources and Governance committee

• Committee came back with recommendation to adopt competency based model as best solution to address change in workforce, economy, technology ( Think ACCE Horizon)

• Doing the same old thing would not provide new thinking!

• We needed people with more vision to the future – we needed leaders

How do we do this now?

Tools for evaluation

• Board of directors background and experience survey o Tracks experience and knowledge of directors on a simple 3 point

scale

❑ No experience

❑ Some experience

❑ Lot’s of experience

Sector No Experience Some Experience Lots of Experience

CEO/Owner of Business X

Corporate Governance X

Entrepreneurial Experience X

Finance X

Human Resources X

Information Technology XManagement Experience X

Marketing & Communications X

Government Relations X

Investment X

Law X

Executive Compensation X

Regulatory Issues X

Stakeholder Relations X

Service on Other Boards X

Others Boards – As Chair X

Other Volunteer Organizations X

Tools for evaluation

• Create summary document of entire board Board of directors background and experience survey.

• From this document we can optimize the board competencies.

• Select new board members each year.

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Director Skills Summary

What do we do to confirm this works?

• Review on annual basis:o Board Survey

o CEO Survey

• Results of our Chamber over last 4 years:o Up 23% in membership

o Revenue is up 10%

Does Board Competency serve us?

• Provides us with insight .

• Provides us with access and influence based on strategic view of organizational objectives; needs identified in detail allows meaningful roles to be identified for individual directors.

• Board members proactively reach out in community to build awareness and excitement about the organization; board members seen to be very effective ambassadors for the organization.

Navigating to be real thinkers

• In the past our board was focused on stewardship, civic duty and often fundraising.

• Today we need people who are focused on Financial Management, Management Oversight and Community Response.

• Community response includes recognizing the value of diversity; current diversity on the board.

CREATING FUTURE-FOCUSED BOARDS

Going Beyond the 3 D’s

30Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

The Standard 3 Ds of Board Service

31Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

The Fourth D: Duty of Foresight

32Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Foresight = Future-Focused

• Preparing the organization and its stakeholders for “What’s Next?”

• Looking continuously forward

• Three core foundational concepts:

– Strategic Legitimacy for stakeholders

– Board Stewardship to grow tangible and intangible value of the organization

– Readiness to learn and making sense of the environment’s unfolding dynamics and creating insights to guide action

33Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Chambers Need to be Agile Organizations

• Learning organizations that thrive in unpredictable, rapidly changing environment

• Stable organizations with tried and true practices, yet dynamic and can fluidly adapt to market changes, innovative technology and government regulation.

• Organizations that open, inclusive, non-hierarchical, evolving continually, and equipped for the future.

34Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Leadership TransformationOld New

Serving as a catalyst for collaboration

Board Roles: Visionary, Architect, Catalyst

Future-Focused and Charting the Unknown

Acting as the authority, holder of knowledge

Directors hold top C-level positions

Board Roles: Planners, Directors, Controllers

Building on and Preserving the Past

Reactive to disruption, environmental changes Creative, becoming the disruptor

Directors meet strategic competencies

Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards 35

36Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Agile Board Competency Matrix

An integral part of PPAI’s strategic plan

37Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

• Strategic Foresight content for

events, education, and publications

• Strategic Foresight Readiness

Profile

• Strategic Foresight Playbook

• Strategic Foresight Training

PPAI Helps its Members Develop Foresight

38Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

WHAT’S ON YOUR MIND?

Questions and Answers

39Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Additional Resources

• Leading Agile Transformation: The new capabilities leaders Need to build 21st century organizations (McKinsey Report)

• Promotional Products Association International, Strategic Foresight Playbook

• American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) Foresight Works

• Smith Bucklin’s 20 for 2019

• IOD Competency Framework

40Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

Summary

41Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

• Drivers of change impact chambers of commerce, their communities and their stakeholders.

• Learning organizations thrive in unpredictable, rapidly changing environment by practicing foresight.

• Board Competency Matrix ensures the right mix of skills, knowledge, experiences and member representation.

• Agile boards embrace the Duty of Foresight to navigate your Chamber’s future and require new competencies.

42Duty of Foresight: New Competencies for Agile Boards

• Cathi Hight

Hight Performance Group

(512) 354-7219cathi@hightperformance.com

• Patrick Sullivan

Halifax Chamber of Commerce

(902) 481-1240Patrick@halifaxchamber.com ickSullivan