CHANGE RESISTANCE: HOW TO UNSTICK A STICKY BOARD MEMBER

BY LORI R. STORM, CAMEX, CCAM

What a year! Everyone has gotten onto the fast track for learning new ways to do business. Have your boards come along for the ride? Or are your boards stuck in a time warp and unable to consider anything new? Let’s see if we can unstick them a bit.

Sometimes you can move your board members along if you offer them a small change or ask them to make this just a trial. If your board doesn’t think they will be locked into something forever, they might be more willing to try a little something different.

TECHNOLOGY ISSUES

Video conferencing is just this type of challenge. Managers have been thrown into the deep end of this pool without water wings, but some boards have been reluctant to even step into the shallow end. So how do we move them along? Let them know how much it can be just like something they are already used to.

Most board members are comfortable having a phone conference meeting; it is something they may have had to do previously. Just let everyone know that they can join the video meeting by phone if they like. If they want to see how it works, they can turn on their computers and see others in the meeting and look at documents that are being shared. But they are under no obligation to set up a camera or even turn on their computers. With no change at all they are attending a video meeting!

Video conferencing can be a challenge for some. Maybe it would help to conduct a practice session one -on-one and try stuff out. What happens if I do this? How do I sound? Are headphones better? Maybe they will want to try it if others seem to be managing. Let them know it is just a trial and doesn’t have to stay the norm.

Here is another electronic nudge you might try with your boards. How about receiving board packets electronically? While the ultimate goal might be to streamline the process for the manager and to save the board the cost of printing and mailing, getting boards comfortable with looking at documents electronically is an end in itself.

Start them out easy. Send out the packet electronically but bring hard copies to the board meetings. Encourage them to bring their laptops or tablets, but to use the hard copies as an assist.

What about mailing out the agenda and manager’s report to the board? Then they can make notes on paper and rely on the electronic version for document referral as needed. Again, let them know it is an experiment and that no one is locked into this format.

CHANGING THOUGHT PROCESSES

All right. Maybe technology is not an issue for your boards. Maybe it is something more attitudinal, something that prevents board members from looking at a new way of working through the board agenda or approaching an entrenched problem. It could be something as simple as managing violations.

Have you ever started with a new association and the first thing they say is, “Look at our thousands of dollars of outstanding fines. You need to help us collect this money.” One of my favorite approaches is to start with the end result. Ask your board what is the end result they want? Is it the fines they want to collect or do they want compliance within the community? Is the problem widespread or is it just a few non-conformists? Delving into the problem with a series of questions helps a board shake loose from their entrenched ideas. Then, when they better understand what their end goal is, you can start working with them to brainstorm alternate ways of achieving what they want, because the fines have not gotten them where they want to go.

It doesn’t have to be earth-shattering changes or complete flips in points of view. What about upgrading the furniture in the clubhouse? Chances are the board has been reserving for just this upgrade, but they are reluctant to take it on. “Our furniture is still good.” “No one has complained about the sofa.”

While these may be true statements, that is not the reason to refurbish the clubhouse. Try painting a mental picture for them of what new carpet, paint and chairs would mean. Take them on a field trip to another association’s clubhouse that has an updated gathering room. Help them see what it might be.

Let them imagine what an inviting space could bring. It could encourage more people to use the space for clubs and events. It would bring in more people to the board meetings, which leads to more participation in the community, which may even lead to new board members!

Helping your board members navigate the whys and what ifs can help shift their patterns of thought into a new place. From baby steps to painting a picture of the desired outcome, you may find that you can foster change where you did not imagine you could.

Lori R. Storm, CAMEx, CCAM, is Division Vice President of Client Development at The Management Trust.