What is the exact definition of "Board Consensus"? An assistant was recently fired by the charity director citing "board consensus" but I am a Board Trustee and I was never consulted.
Ordinarily, a “Board consensus” arises when all members of the Board who are present at a meeting agree with a decision. Without an actual meeting or a unanimous written consent (which may not have to be unanimous in a few states), the Board cannot take official action. The director (assuming this is the equivalent of an Executive Director) may have consulted some, although not all, of the Board in making the decision and simply said there was a consensus. Or the consensus may have been obtained at a meeting at which you were not present.
The question raises an interesting issue, however, whether Board action is necessary — or appropriate — to terminate an “assistant.” Ordinarily the Board delegates hiring and firing authority to the Executive Director (chief executive officer) and evaluates the CEO, in part, on how the team does in carrying out the mission of the organization.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Comments
Some of the answer to your question may be found in your organization's Bylaws. When I review a church's Bylaws and offer advice for modernization or update, I frequently point out the noticeable absence of specific authorities delegated to the Board of Directors, officers, and other leaders or employees of the organization. In addition to that, I frequently comment that the Bylaws in their current condition are not sufficiently "intentional" to make clear what the document is trying to tell its readers.
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