{"id":1616,"date":"2014-08-01T08:27:04","date_gmt":"2014-08-01T12:27:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.trustacrossamerica.com\/blog\/?p=1616"},"modified":"2014-08-01T08:27:04","modified_gmt":"2014-08-01T12:27:04","slug":"there-is-a-reason-why-we-call-them-trustees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trustacrossamerica.com\/blog\/?p=1616","title":{"rendered":"There is a Reason Why We Call Them Trustees"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Late last year\u00a0Trust Across America-Trust Around the World\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0published the first in a planned\u00a0series of award-winning books.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0TRUST INC., Strategies for Building Your Company’s Most Valuable Asset<\/em>\u00a0<\/a>brings together the wisdom of 32 experts. Six months later we released our second book, Trust Inc. A Guide for Boards & C-Suites<\/a>. <\/em>In this book,<\/em>\u00a0sixty\u00a0experts have joined forces to offer 100 strategies.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Throughout the month of\u00a0August, we will be featuring 31 essays from our second book. Each stands alone\u00a0as an excellent resource in guiding Boards and C-Suites on driving a trust agenda at the highest level in the organization, and provides tools for those who choose to implement trust-building programs in their organization.<\/p>\n

We begin our series with advice from\u00a0David A. Shore, PhD<\/a>, a former associate dean of the Harvard School of Public Health, and the founding director of Harvard’s Trust Initiative; and his colleague\u00a0Jona Raasch, CEO,\u00a0The\u00a0Governance Institute (TGI), a division of NRC, a member based organization with 1000+ healthcare organization membership.<\/p>\n

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There is a Reason Why We Call Them \u201cTrustees\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

To a large extent, the long-term success of an organization depends on a trusting relationship between the board and executive management. On the one hand, boards must allow management teams enough flexibility to run day-to-day operations, while at the same time, ensuring appropriate oversight. When boards stray into operations and away from policy it is often for two main reasons: 1) they pursue what is most familiar to them, and 2) they lose trust in the CEO. Sadly, this loss of trust occurs more frequently than one might expect. <\/em><\/p>\n

While oversight is central to everything boards do, here in lies the rub and the potential trust\u00a0buster. Boards engage in oversight by monitoring decisions and actions to ensure they conform to policy and produce intended results. A board\u2019s responsibility is oversight, and yet board members are infrequently<\/strong> on-site. We know that trust is built around the twin towers of competence and conscience. A competent executive management team is an expectation of all boards. Therefore, you build very little trust just by being competent. When it comes to building trust, conscience is where the equity lies. Conscience is how you behave when no one is looking. By virtue of their role as \u201cabsentee landlords,\u201d board members are rarely \u201clooking.\u201d For a detailed analysis of board member meeting and committee activity in one industry, see: The Governance Institute\u2019s 2013 Biennial Survey of Hospital and Health Systems<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

I hope you have enjoyed this first sneak peak into the trust treasures contained in our second book. If this brief look behind the door has been helpful,\u00a0follow\u00a0this link<\/a>\u00a0to order both of our books online.<\/p>\n

Barbara Brooks Kimmel<\/strong>\u00a0is the Executive Director of\u00a0Trust Across America-Trust Around the World<\/a>\u00a0whose mission is to help organizations build trust. She is also the editor of the award winning\u00a0TRUST INC.<\/a>\u00a0book series. In 2012 Barbara was named “One of 25 Women Changing the World” by Good Business International.<\/p>\n

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Should you wish\u00a0to communicate directly with Barbara, drop her a note at\u00a0Barbara@trustacrossamerica.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2014, Next Decade, Inc.<\/p>\n

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