Governing Resources and Articles

This is a new page at this site. We will continue to add articles and references that will be useful for board members who are governing using Policy Governance. Please check back again for developments.

• Governing.wordpress.com is our new blog. I (Robert Ballantyne) am experimenting with the blog format in order to author a number of articles arising from our practice. Lately, I've been posting new material every week, and I still have a list of draft articles to complete. Frankly, I am finding that the blogging software seems to make the task of writing, formating and publishing to the Internet easier than adding to this web site. Please follow this link and peruse the material there. You may use the RSS feed to alert you when something new is posted. We have not yet decided whether to use the comment fields associated with the articles. Since it is easy to edit and repost to those articles, I freely change them when a new thought occurs to me, or someone (like you perhaps) writes to me with a useful comment or question. Publishing to the web is not like committing words to paper.
• Board Leadership, Transition & Development is the web version of a PowerPoint presentation by Robert Ballantyne. It includes the slides and the speakers' notes. You will not need Powerpoint to view this material -- it works with your web browser. Contact Robert if your group would be interested in this presentation.
• Consensus vs. Parliamentary decisions is an article that explores two forms of group decision-making. Most volunteer organizations run meetings using a form of Parliamentary (Robert's) Rules of Order. Although it is familiar, and most people expect it, parliamentary procedure is not the only way to operate. In recent years some organizations have been working to make decisions on the basis of consensus. Both parliamentary Rules and Formal Consensus are useful styles of managing an assembly of people, and both have value. The organization should decide up-front which will be used and encourage the members to become skilled in the practice.
• On Being A Fiduciary is outline of topics (provided here with some discussion) that we find useful to explore before you delve into the details and practice of Policy Governance.
• The Differences Between Traditional Governance and Policy Governance. This is the same article that is available on the navigation bar to the left. It addresses the major organizational and cultural changes that are required when boards consider moving from the old ways of governing to Policy Governance. Our clients have found this frank discussion to be useful.

__________________________________________