REBUILD, RECREATE, REEXAMINE

In the Coen brothers brilliant and brooding retelling of the Story of Job, A Serious Man, the inept, harried hero, a physics professor struggling for tenure, advises his class that he expects them to understand fully something called "Heisenberg's uncertainty principle." He tells them that even if they cannot figure it out, they are still responsible for it "on the midterm." Good advice for the leaders of The Jewish Federations of North America and for our federations themselves.

We need to reinvent ourselves; we must be, and in many places become, relevant. In so many places, re-engineering is so vital right now. We can't do that until the lay and professional leadership of The Jewish Federations of North America understand the questions that need to be asked. And, with that understanding, the courage to confront the debate that needs to follow. The Jewish Federations of North America's leaders should consider immediately creating a lay-professional Task Force at the highest levels to review and recommend on the organizational mission, reach, direction and roles. In the interim....

In a Comment to the Post Denouement, an "Anonymous" (vu den?) correspondent posed a challenge:

"Can you give specific behavioral substance to your four principles:

"a moral center, a grounding in the reality of the federation experience and a dedication to the timeless principles upon which our federation system has been constructed and a commitment to real transparency."

Intentions aside, because Kathy and Jerry are good and smart people, what two or three specific actions should they take on each of the four? At this point in our movement's history and in the conversation you have so earnestly undertaken a list of action items would be helpful."
In my conversations with Jerry Silverman and Kathy Manning before they assumed their positions as President and CEO and Board Chair of The Jewish Federations of North America, I respectfully suggested that they rebuild UJC starting with the successes the organization has had in its first decade. I don't know if they will choose to follow that path ... but, let me lay it out for you as I envision it.

Finding a greater success than UJC-Washington for UJC:The Jewish Federations of North America would be the equivalent of discovering a new avian species. Such a success just doesn't exist. Pushing the successes of UJC-Washington to the front of the queue would be a great first step. Not just part of a litany of supposed "successes" as the predecessor leadership had constantly conjured, but bragging on William Daroff's and his staff and lay leaders' successes as examples of what The Jewish Federations of North America can do for its owners.

Simultaneously, "confess error" -- the reversion of UJC-Israel from New York to Jerusalem is a failed experiment. It has yielded no positive results and has demonstrated what one arm of the system operating out of control and out of sync at great expense can cost The Jewish Federations of North America. Discontinue the millions in expense and with that termination end the "10x10" and Sheatufim experiments, reassuring JAFI and JDC of the system's trust in them and, thereby, restating the historic federation-JAFI/JDC partnerships.

Then, invest the money saved in downsizing and relocating UJC-Israel with a reinvigorated Overseas Missions Program -- subsidizing Young Leadership Cabinet, Prime Minister's and King David Society Missions within the Development Department under The Jewish Federations of North America umbrella. The multi-million dollar Marketing and Branding Initiative will no longer require the huge national financial investment; use those savings to revive the national role in the Annual Campaign and in designated and endowment giving initiatives, hiring up men and women with the background and reputation that will enhance the national organization's prestige and esteem within the local federations. In so doing, end the separation of Development, Planned Giving and Endowment and the "Center for Jewish Philanthropy" merging them under the leadership of the Office of "National Chairman for Campaign and Development."

Begin to take and articulate the federation position on matters of public policy here and in Israel. The Jewish Federations of North America can't remain silent on these issues as if they are the sole purview of the JCPA and the Conference of Presidents. As the Board Chair, Kathy Manning's must become the voice we hear on matters impacting up the federations and our donors.

And, thereby, The Jewish Federations of North America must become the moral voice of federation collective responsibility. JFNA should publicly acknowledge this role and appoint a Blue Ribbon Committee on Collective Responsibility to recommend the means and methods of implementation...and, more critically, to implement. It is not enough to convene JAFI and JDC periodically (although those meetings are superb hasbara and are a basic "good" in and of themselves) and merely report how cash and allocations are being drastically cut -- it is quite another thing to actually attempt to do something about it. Moral responsibility has to trump passivity in this area once and for all. If the federations' national organization, the organization that now bears their name and brand, fails to stand for collective responsibility, my friends, it stands for nothing.
Four years ago as an outgrowth of a major FRD Study, the national organization embarked on an Emerging Communities effort partnering with two high potential growth federations in the West. This was to be a starting point. After two years of engagement, UJC's "leaders" terminated the effort with no discussion within UJC governance bodies (and none even with the communities directly impacted). The Emerging Communities partnership should be reborn and expanded in a demonstration of the national organization's commitment to partnership with high growth high potential federations around the continent where The Jewish Federation's of North America's impact can be significant.

And, UJC must continue its critical and successful work through I-LEAD, the National Bond Program, Federation Peer Yardstick, CPE, Emerging Leaders, Presidents and Executive training and the circulation of best practices.

All of these need to be and can be done in an atmosphere of transparency and accountability. An atmosphere where the issues confronting our system are freely and openly debated and where those who serve -- be it on Work Groups, Task Forces, Executive Committee and Board -- feel and believe that they are part of the process, not excluded from it and no longer ignored. Transparency also mandates that leadership be open and honest not only with ownership and constituencies but with the media. It was troubling and confounding to read in a pre-GA story in the JTA that the organization's new leaders refused to be interviewed by the Jewish press.Maybe it was clear to them why they did so; it sure can't be clear to the rest of us who wish to learn of their hopes and plans.

The seminal question: is The Jewish Federations of North America merely going to perform functions or is it going to serve a purpose? To continue down the current path, to merely tweak rather than re-engineer, will be like changing the in-flight food on the Hindenburg -- it would be doomed to failure. To those who suggest that The Jewish Federations of North America continue its slide toward being nothing more than "a really great trade association," think of all the great work that must be done and wouldn't be.

Each of you may have your own construct for a rebuilt Jewish Federations of North America that will be far better than these. Offer them...soon.

Rwexler