Most nonprofit board members are volunteers. They don’t have hours of time to research issues, to generate and analyze alternatives, to coordinate with others, or to study the environment in detail. It is not possible for them to be involved in daily operations. Instituting the Corporate Model separates policy development from operations.

“We [Boards] should be discussing policy and strategy, not counting paper clips!”

The larger the organization, the greater the importance of this Corporate Model. Author Eugene Fram says that this model, while useful at all sizes, becomes mandatory once the budget exceeds $1 million per year or 15 employees.

But transition to this model is not easy. You will find that some valuable employees will not be willing to make the change. According to Brad Leeper, of Generis church consultants, “You can expect to lose one or two people. And which ones may surprise you.” But the change must be made to ensure the survival and growth of the organization and to ensure the mission is accomplished. Reference: Policy vs. Paper Clips

Completed Staff Work

The concept of Completed Staff Work is basic to this model. Wikipedia describes it best:

Completed Staff Work is a principle of management which states that subordinates are responsible for submitting written recommendations to superiors in such a manner that the superior need do nothing further in the process than review the submitted document and indicate approval or disapproval.

In Completed Staff Work, the staff member is responsible for identifying the problem or issue requiring decision by some higher authority, such as the Executive Director or a board. In a written form, such as a memorandum, the subordinate documents the research done, the facts gathered, and the analysis of alternative courses of action. The memo concludes with a specific recommendation for action by the superior.

Thus the authority has only to sign the approval. This concept assumes and requires a high level of trust between the board or manager and the staff.

I was once on a staff where we would bring up to 100 slides, vu-cells actually, to each presentation to management. Weeks went into preparation. But, the managers would get bored and impatient with the presentation. Decisions were few. Finally, we were able to ask the General Manager, “What is it you really want to know?”He instantly whipped out a pen and wrote down 10 specific topics. He said, “Give me one slide on each of these and I promise not to ask for more.” We tried it. He kept his promise. Eventually, I was able to present a single slide and he was able to make a bid-decision on a $100 million dollar program. It can be done.

Reference: CompletedStaffWork.com