IT'S KADDISH FOR THE LAY-PROFESSIONAL PARTNERSHIP

The death of the lay-professional partnership began so many years ago -- first in our communities and, then, in almost a trickle-up, at CJF where in its last years, there was no question where decisions were being made. 

I was so wrong when in real time I thought that the federations' desire/demand for merger was to gain control of the United Jewish Appeal Budget. 20/20 hindsight has educated me to the real reason, budget control was important, but the desire/demand of mainly the Large Cities and, there, of the Large City Executives, was put an end to an organization where lay leadership still led policy decisions in partnership with a professional staff that then executed them. Nevermore would there be an organization that could drive an Operation Exodus or anything like it; nevermore would there be an organization that felt the moral obligation to advocate for greater allocations to overseas needs; and nevermore would lay leaders seeking a balance in the lay-professional partnership assume leadership positions in what would be JFNA. Well, these professional leaders, the best and brightest of our generations, succeeded in most of these goals -- perhaps, beyond their dreams.

When I write "most of these goals," it is because there have been failures along the way to the hegemony of the professional -- and those failures have been mammoth. Two stand out:

1. The Global Planning Table -- driven by the passion and determination of Kathy Manning, this was a monumental multi-million dollar fiasco -- a wholly predictable nightmare of a JFNA FUBAR. For years system professionals will demand "leave it to the professionals" and, if necessary, point to the GPT and observe that "this is what happens when lay leaders with no knowledge of what is happening in our communities push a personal agenda." But, the GPT would not have happened absent...
2. Jerry Silverman -- clearly hired because, unlike the LCE who immediately preceded him as CEO -- Hoffman and Rieger, without commenting on their competency -- Jerry would be wholly subservient to those who hired him and compensated him to such an egregious extent. 

But, there were other failures -- costly ones -- as well -- think the "ONAD process," think the "Trust," think "TribeFest," think "#ISH" -- all of them failures driven by professionals

I once complimented one of the best professional leaders: "You have an incredible gift; you are able to convince the lay leadership that they/we are actually participating in the decisions." I meant this as both a compliment and a lamentation on the passage from what was first the dominance of the lay leader, to a balance in the lay-professional partnership, to the gross imbalance of today.

Last year a wonderful lay leader stated:

"...to be effective Federations must be run by professionals. Lay leaders have a role to set the mission, make sure the organization has the right CEO and that CEO is supported and has the resources to do his or her job. Federations can no longer be looked upon as just fundraising organizations and lay leaders can no longer get involved in making day to day decisions."

I assumed that this consummate leader, who would begin his Board Chair service at JFNA weeks later, fully understood the difference between "the right CEO" and the wrong one; and that having "set the mission," lay leadership would have a continuing responsibility to assure that that mission was being implemented with excellence and, if not, to take all necessary steps to make certain that the mission was achieved. As other organizations have learned to their sorrow and to their community's their organization's ultimate detriment, handing over the organization to the "wrong CEO" can be, and in JFNA's case is, an unmitigated disaster.

But let's not ignore Board Member obligations. As one group of non-profit experts set forth:

1. Determine mission and purpose. It is the board's responsibility to create and review a statement of mission and purpose that articulates the organization's goals, means, and primary constituents served.
2. Select the chief executive. Boards must reach consensus on the chief executive's responsibilities and undertake a careful search to find the most qualified individual for the position.
3. Support and evaluate the chief executive. The board should ensure that the chief executive has the moral and professional support he or she needs to further the goals of the organization.
4. Ensure effective planning. Boards must actively participate in an overall planning process and assist in implementing and monitoring the plan's goals.
5. Monitor and strengthen programs and services. The board's responsibility is to determine which programs are consistent with the organization's mission and monitor their effectiveness.
6. Ensure adequate financial resources. One of the board's foremost responsibilities is to secure adequate resources for the organization to fulfill its mission.
7. Protect assets and provide proper financial oversight. The board must assist in developing the annual budget and ensuring that proper financial controls are in place.
8. Build a competent board. All boards have a responsibility to articulate prerequisites for candidates, orient new members, and periodically and comprehensively evaluate their own performance.
9. Ensure legal and ethical integrity. The board is ultimately responsible for adherence to legal standards and ethical norms.
10. Enhance the organization's public standing. The board should clearly articulate the organization's mission, accomplishments, and goals to the public and garner support from the community.*

No, the non-profit experts don't suggest that lay leaders merely hire the best CEO and back-off. Far from it.

An incredibly high percentage of our communal organizational CEOs will retire or be discharged within the next two to five years -- it's already happening. If organizational leadership fails to use this time to understand the role of lay leadership in balance with and respect of organizational professionals, then the disaster that is JFNA today will (as it has already begun) further infect our communities. Because if all our leadership says is "to be effective Federations must be run by professionals," without adding "...who understand and respect the lay-professional partnership," the communities may be wholly delegating their fiduciary responsibilities to too many who will not understand how to move the community forward in positive ways.

The accretion of communal power to the professional cadre would not have taken place/be taking place were it not for the weakness in or unwillingness of lay leadership to accept their fiduciary responsibilities and exercise them. 

But that's where we are.

Rwexler

* Richard T. Ingram, Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards, Second Edition (BoardSource 2009).