4 Pillars of Cooperative Governance Self-Assessment Tool
Boards can use this survey tool to do a broad, self-assessment of their own work. It utilizes the 4 Pillars of Co-op Governance as an organizing lens with some broad, key characteristics to fit under each Pillar: Teaming, Accountable Empowerment, Strategic Leadership and Democracy. By asking team members to fill out the survey and then reviewing the data, a group can build a broader [...]
Building a Strong Top Leadership Team: Creating and maintaining a healthy board-GM relationship
By Michael Healy 177 March-April 2015 In many co-ops, the manager and board of directors function effectively as a leadership team. Along with having systems and structures in place that support and encourage healthy personal and professional relationships, a key element in each of these high-functioning teams is a general manager (GM) who has accepted responsibility for strengthening the board-GM relationship. Through interviews [...]
Accountability = Job Satisfaction
Staff Survey overview and sample report
Great Idea: Sharing the Leadership Role
As well as being a consultant with CDS Consulting Co-op, Art Sherwood is the board president at Bloomingfoods Market & Deli in Bloomington, IN and is heading into his third and last term as president. As he thought about how to prepare others to take on the role, he believes that alignment is as important to leadership as it is to perpetuation. “My approach [...]
Servant Leadership and Cooperation
By Joel Kopischke 167 July-August 2013 “SERVANT AND LEADER. Can these two roles be fused in one real person, in all levels of status or calling? If so, can that person live and be productive in the real world of the present? My sense of the present leads me to say yes to both questions.” – Robert Greenleaf, in his revised edition of “The [...]
Board Discipline
In order to be effective in leading a retail food cooperative, a board must protect the integrity of its process. Two keys to sound board process are the ability to speak with one voice and the ability to protect confidential information. Most often these objectives are achieved with a shared understanding of the board’s roles and responsibilities, by establishing a set of clearly articulated [...]
3 steps toward sustainable business growth
In the midst of growth, leaders may see that they are outgrowing their structure and systems but feel so overwhelmed that they can’t imagine stopping long enough to make changes. Guess what? We will never feel like we have the time to make big changes. What’s the solution? Shift the workplace culture into one that views itself as a constantly expanding organization instead of [...]
How to cultivate a positive workplace culture
What are the hallmarks of a positive and productive workplace culture? I would include engagement, smart work habits, having the right people in the right positions, healthy communication and fun. By fostering these attributes in your organization, your staff members will be satisfied, motivated and empowered to do their best every day. Here's how to do it: Engagement Be sure that opportunities exist for [...]