Blog – Page 16 – CramdenTECH

Core Functions of the Board of Directors

Throughout the year, but most often in springtime, organisations around the country hold their Annual General Meetings. Amongst other matters, A.G.M.s provide a company’s members with an opportunity to elect the directors that will manage the company on their behalf.

For people who have not undertaken governance training, this post provides a very quick summary of the core functions of a Board of Directors. Broadly speaking, directors are collectively responsible for:

– Ensuring that the company achieves its mission and objectives as agreed by the Board. The mission and objectives should be in line with what is stated in the main and subsidiary objects of the company’s Memorandum of Association.

– Assessing and managing the risks faced by the company. The risks to be managed varies from one company to the next and may be categorised under the headings of strategic, financial, operational, governance, external and compliance risks.

– Monitoring company performance. Directors should be aware of how the company is performing at both an operational and strategic level. Tracking performance indicators, outputs and outcomes provides a means to monitor performance.

– Reviewing internal company controls. All companies should have a well developed set of internal controls to ensure good financial practices and compliance requirements are adhered to.

– Supervising the financial and budgetary planning processes. These processes help boards to make the most of the resources at the company’s disposal.

– Approving contracts, finance and investment in excess of specified thresholds. The approval process helps directors to monitor key financial decisions and contractual obligations of consequence to the company.

– Being accountable to members and external stakeholders. Directors act on behalf of the members and are required to report back to them at the A.G.M. Directors should also be mindful of the need to keep all key stakeholders informed of the company’s progress.

– Ensuring the company is managed appropriately. This is an important function, particularly where operational and management control is carried out by employees or agency staff.

– Meeting regularly as a board (as is appropriate) and working effectively in governing the company. Board members must be able to work as a coherent unit if they are to carry out the functions listed above!

It should also be noted that a Board of Directors must comply with the regulations and compliance requirements as set out in the Companys Acts.

You can learn more about the functions and responsibilities of board membership on CramdenTECH’s BoardPASS Standard training course.

Business Planning for Social Enterprises

As more and more non-profits look to diversify their funding streams, directors and executives are looking at the financial opportunities afforded by social enterprise initiatives. But moving from a grant administration set-up, to one that actively seeks out earned income streams, needs to be carefully planned. Needless to say, traditional business planning has an important role to play in ensuring that sustainable business markets are pursued. Irrespective of the business planning approach used, non-profits should seek to identify and put in place strategies that clearly play to their business strengths.

As an initial first step in the planning process, it can be beneficial for directors and executives to create a “Business Model Canvas” of their proposed social enterprise initiative. The canvas focuses attention on nine core elements, that collectively, impact on the sustainability of an organisation’s business model. Completing the business model canvas in advance of writing a business plan is helpful, as it forces boards and committees to test the assumptions upon which their business model and thinking are based. As a result, a more accurate picture of market opportunities and non-profit competencies and strengths emerge. This in turn enables a business plan to be developed, that selects the specific business strategies that can best help a non-profit to succeed in achieving its social enterprise objectives.

In preparing the business model canvas, boards and executive staff should seek answers to nine key questions:

1. What customer or social problem are your solving?
2. Why will customers buy from you?
3. How will customers access your services or obtain your products?
4. How will you acquire and keep customers?
5. How will you generate cash?
6. What assets do you require?
7. Who are you dependent on to deliver services and produce products?
8. What are the most important activities for the social enterprise to focus on?
9. Where does spend need to be concentrated?

Once directors, trustees and executives have a solid basis to answer each of the nine questions, then they are better equipped to write a business plan that can be successfully executed. The business plan will provide readers with mission critical information with respect to proposed strategy, operations, marketing and finance. Importantly, the business plan will show clearly the sustainable basis upon which the social enterprise is being built. Hence, directors and executives should view the business plan, not just as a planning tool, but also as a significant communications tool in their bid to influence stakeholders!

Business Planning for Social Enterprises presentation slides available at: http://www.slideshare.net/CramdenTECH/business-planning-for-social-enterprises

Leadership Shouldn’t be Left to Executives!

Global adventurer Alison Levine had some interesting thoughts to share on the nature of leadership recently. She said “… I think it’s a mistake to rely on executives for leadership or people that have certain titles or a certain amount of tenure.” She went on to say “I think people realise everyone’s in a leadership position. And leadership shouldn’t be left to an executive staff or board of directors or heads of department.”

If we take these words to heart – then our jobs as CEO’s, Executive Directors and Vice-Presidents, is to cultivate the leader within each employee. There isn’t a magic formula to achieve this, but we can start by assessing our own behaviour and attitude to work and seeing how our style of management or leadership influences the styles of the people around us. Moving beyond ourselves, how does the culture of the organisation in which we work, affect the emergence of leadership behaviours as the norm, rather than the exception. And what of the power structures within the workplace? What impact would a workplace of leaders have on the exercise of authority, autonomy and consistency in decision-making?

Perhaps the answer lies in creating a culture that enables different people to emerge as leaders as and when the need arises. As circumstances and situations differ, the individuals taking on leadership roles also differ. Hence, the person best placed to fill the leadership role does so, rather than the person whose job title denotes leadership authority in the situation. Managers and supervisors can be trained to exhibit leadership behaviour and to cultivate leadership behaviours in their colleagues and direct reports. CramdenTECH’s two-day programme “Leadership Skills for Supervisors and Managers“, is designed to help participants to develop their own leadership potential and that of the people they work with. You can learn more about the programme at https://cramdentech.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Learn-with-CramdenTECH-Spring-2014-Workshops-and-Seminars.pdf.

And if you would like to learn more about Alison Levine’s thoughts on leadership, you can watch her appearance on CBS http://www.cbsnews.com/news/on-the-edge-an-adventurers-guide-to-leadership/ as she promotes her new book, “On the Edge: The Art of High-Impact Leadership.”

Creating eLearning Content for the Online Reader

There’s a wealth of information on the Web providing advice about how to create eLearning content for the online reader. One of the best articles we’ve read recently, comes from SHIFT’s eLearning Blog.

Some of the practical tips to remember when creating content are listed below.

Some users can spend up to 69% of the time on the left side of the screen.
Less than 20% of content on an average web page is read!
It takes on average 2.6 seconds for web page visitors to form their first impressions of your content.
Dominant headlines capture attention faster.
Use graphics to reinforce text. We process visual information faster than text.
Use whitespace on a page generously.
Use a readable size and type of font.

And remember that we read online content more slowly than when reading articles or content on paper!

When you are next creating articles or content for online users, consider the points above. Rather than simply uploading paper based articles as online documents, why not edit the documents down, add graphics and make points of information succinct. Readers will remember more!

Seven Free Online Resources for SME’s and Not For Profits in Ireland

Directors, Trustees and managers of SME’s and Not For Profits are busy people. So any time that can be saved searching for online guides to best practice in governance and management is important. We are sharing CramdenTECH’s top five bookmarked topic specific Irish reference sites. Hopefully you’ll find them as valuable as we do!

Legal responsibilities of directors: General Publications section Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement …Read Here

SME Accounting resources from Certified Public Accountants …Read Here

Guidance for Directors and Senior Managers on their Responsibilities for Workplace Safety and Health …Read Here

Data Protection Information for Organisations in Ireland …Read Here

Employer Resources – Best Practice for Non-Profits in Ireland…Read Here

If you are in the Not For Profit Sector, we’d also recommend KnowledgeNET from Carmichael Centre and Managing Better: tools for taking care of business from Pobal. But we’re biased in both cases, as CramdenTECH’s managing director Caroline Egan had a hand in providing content for each of these resources!

6,000 Free Higher Education Places in Ireland

In the third allocation of education places under the the Springboard programme, 6,000 free part-time higher education places will be made available for the unemployed. Over 200 Springboard courses will be provided by the 38 participating Institutes of Technology, universities and privately-run higher education colleges.

Participants will be able to develop marketable skill sets and acquire qualifications in the fields of information & communication technologies, financial services and international languages. The range of qualifications on offer include awards at certificate, degree and masters levels.

To see the full range of courses available and to check eligibility requirements, visit www.springboardcourses.ie.