Group facilitation, dynamics and collaboration
toddwallace@columinate.coop
503-307-8797
Early in January 2022, the Cooperative Board Leadership Development (CBLD) team presented a new virtual workshop, Trust and Betrayal in the Board/Manager Relationship, to discuss the ways boards and general managers can build and repair trust. We connected with the workshop facilitators to learn more about the training.
When Anne Carter came to Medford Food Co-op in Medford, Oregon, the startup co-op had been open for two years and was still establishing its operations and governance. Their internal situation was mirrored in the community-at-large. Medford was once a logging town, and the current 225,000 inhabitants were transitioning their economy to tourism and business services. That new dynamic, and a focus on health and sustainability, also led to the creation of the food co-op.
Good leaders often ask this question: what would set us up for success? Most of the time the answer is simple. Master the fundamentals. By being good at the basics—like being committed to consistent governance systems and applying respectful, inclusive communication to discussions and decisions—success as a board member is most-likely assured. Yet, it’s harder than it looks in practice. That’s exactly why fundamentals [...]
By Todd Wallace In the summer of 2014, a Supreme Court ruling in the case of Burwell vs. Hobby Lobby led the CEO of Eden Foods, a prominent organic foods producer, to revive an earlier 2013 court case arguing that the company be exempted from paying for its employees to receive birth-control, as required by the Affordable Care Act. The company’s lawyers cited the [...]
Accountable Empowerment It is always important for a co-op board of directors to have good systems of accountability in place to provide proper and strategic oversight of the general manager. With strongly increasing demand for natural and organic products resulting in more pressure from competitors, cooperatives need to strengthen operations, and at the same time effectively communicate the value the cooperative brings to its [...]
Ever had someone ask that simple question: What is the board's job anyway? and wondered where to start? The CDS Consulting Co-op model for cooperative governance, the Four Pillars of Cooperative Governance can help! We identify four pillars built on a foundation of Cooperative Identity that lead to the success of the cooperative. Each piece helps tell the story of the board's job. At the top is Success of [...]
By Art Sherwood, Todd Wallace 175 November-December 2014 In 2013, the International Cooperative Alliance, in its “Blueprint for a Cooperative Decade,” identified the elevating of participation as a key component of its 2020 Vision for more and stronger cooperatives. The “Blueprint” states that, “Democratic member participation is the best-known feature of the co-operative way of doing business and a major part of what characterizes [...]
The relationship between the board and general manager is of paramount importance to any cooperative because both parties provide a connection to the co-op’s main constituency: owners. The co-op owners trust that their elected representatives will provide good governance on their behalf, resulting in positive outcomes toward fulfilling the co-op’s goals. In turn, the board delegates responsibility to management to carry out operational strategies [...]
By Todd Wallace 164 Jan-Feb 2013 The use of committees by boards is ubiquitous—as it should be, considering a small group’s agility when compared to a whole board. Unfortunately, boards often end up with unwieldy committee structures, groups that take up time and resources with little to show for it, or committee participants who feel burnt out and overworked. To avoid these undesirable results, consider the following suggestions when [...]
By Todd Wallace 161 July - August - 2012 Our co-op boards are groups elected and charged with a common purpose: fulfilling the legal and moral obligations of their co-op, on behalf of a diverse set of member-owners. Their fiduciary responsibilities demand high-quality deliberation and decision-making to ensure both the cooperative's fiscal prosperity (its health as an enterprise) and the continued relevance and achievement [...]
