BOARD MEETINGS THAT WORK
James B. Casey
One of the most difficult tasks confronting a new public library director is establishing a sound working relationship with the library board of trustees. Given the inevitable mix of personalities, local politics, and relationships long in place on the board before the arrival of the recently hired library director, there are not likely to be any firm and comprehensive rules for success that can prevent early termination or the gradual involvement by some trustees in the day-to-day operations of the library. Librarians can, however, take steps to seize the initiative in positive, nonconfrontational ways that can make board service more productive and enjoyable.
MEETING CONTENT AND THE DIVISION OF LABOR
One of the most important opportunities for such enhanced performance is in the preparation of content for regular and special board meetings. Avoiding lengthy discussion of minutiae and argumentation over how to address problems is essential for an effective meeting. A director needs to present clear, concise sets of recommendations and accompanying documentation. The board of trustees should not be expected to develop solutions to problems but to choose from a menu of recommendations developed by the library director and staff. Though board input can be extremely valuable and insightful, the nuts and bolts of implementation are matters of detail that need to be ironed out and presented to the board as recommendations. If the board declines to approve a given recommendation, the wise library director accepts that rejection and either perfects the solution or moves on to address other issues.
For example, in attempting to make corrections or improvements in a policy, the director needs to prepare a copy of the policy document with the various words struck out and the newly proposed language in bold. An accompanying memo explaining the need for wording changes might also help to clarify the intended improvement. If the changes are deemed to be unsatisfactory, a revised policy statement introduced in the next meeting with changes that reflect board concerns is preferable to a major rewrite during the meeting itself.
BUDGET MEETINGS
I recommend that in preparing annual budgets the director work in conjunction with staff over several weeks or months in advance of those board meeting dates where budget and levy approval are needed. The difficult chore of developing realistic revenue and budget projections that are reflective of the actual needs of the library is a task on which the director and staff must take the initiative. If the board has a designated subcommittee able to work with the director to offer general guidelines, this can be extremely helpful in the early stages of budget preparation. If the board has overall directives for the budget, the director needs to keep these in mind as the budget requests are being developed. The director can further expedite matters by developing a line-by-line analysis of each revenue and budget line that anticipates questions from trustees about projected changes over previous budgets. Detailed, advance preparation can often earn the confidence of board members and discourage the rewriting of budget lines by trustees.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
In addition to complying with state laws involving open-meetings notification, library directors need to take careful measures to assess the content of each and every agenda item as well as the accompanying documents for accuracy and clarity. Once the agenda has been discussed and agreed on with the board president, the agenda and accompanying material should be sent to all trustees several days in advance of the board meeting. Calling every trustee a day or two prior to the meeting to determine if there are any questions regarding the documents and agenda is strongly recommended. If there are questions or problems, the librarian has several days or hours to make corrections or to assemble information to address the question. Such prior interaction should help keep confusion and questions from slowing down the actual board meeting and creating the impression of disorganization during a public meeting.
CONSENT AGENDA
In addition to providing trustees with ample time to examine their materials well in advance of the board meeting, the next recommended step is to seek the adoption of a consent agenda. A consent agenda is, in effect, an agenda within the larger board meeting agenda. It lists regular agenda items that are necessary but routine and can be enacted in one motion. A consent agenda might include approval of minutes of the previous board meeting, bills and invoices, financial reports, lists of personnel changes, and policies up for review where no changes have been recommended. The board president asks for a motion and second to approve the consent agenda. Trustees with questions or concerns about any item under the consent agenda can ask that the item be removed and placed under “New Business” for consideration. Once that is accomplished, every item remaining is approved automatically with the acceptance of the consent agenda. Figure 1 is an example of a board meeting agenda with “Consent Items.”
More efficient board meetings can result in greater productivity, clearer focus on substantive issues, and less occasion for micromanagement and disputation. Preparation is the key.