Board Orientation
In our over 25 years of consulting Destination Marketing and Leadership Organizations, we’ve seen the best of the best…along with the ones that make us merely shake our heads in disbelief. Yeah, like the serial killer in those Geico commercials.
And, here are the two markers we always see in underperforming Boards and DMOs that are in crisis mode. Ready?
Board meetings that are all about staff reporting, leaving precious little time for Board interaction and conversation. Yeah, I know that many CEOs prefer to script the meetings to the minute…but, trust us, that is not what your Board wants. And, at some point, they’ll push back.
The other is a laissez faire attitude toward Board Orientation, typically exemplified by the CEO telling us that they take a new recruit to lunch, have a nice conversation and hand them the Board Orientation Manual. Like there is a Powerball chance in hell that they’ll read it. Or, if they do, that they’ll understand the lexicon and nuance found within.
That is in no way meant to demean the intelligence of your new Board members. But, let’s be honest. Did you understand how this crazy world of Destination Marketing worked on your first day? So how would someone with possibly less experience in the hospitality industry understand a lunch conversation and a 60-page manual filled with foreign jargon?
We’ll get to designing better Board meetings in a future commentary. But today, as we prepare to head to Tampa for Destinations International's Annual Convention, here’s my take on Board Orientation (which may also apply to Professional Staff).
Those of us leading DMOs need to view Orientation with the same reverence we view our Annual Meeting. If our Boards are to be the value-add we want and need (and not the anchor we abhor), this could possibly be the most important meeting of the year. This is where we can engage new recruits to be energized advocates and activists instead of confused rookies for the first 6 to 12 months of their Board service.
Thus, it’s more than lunch. It needs to be a half-day immersion into our world. Explain to them that this is more than Room Nights. Show them how what DMOs do also powers Economic Development (which they likely think they understand and value). How we inspire future residents and investors. How we manage the destination brand and how their voice can help mold the future of the community they love.
This should be a full-on, multi-media extravaganza. And veterans should be there too…both as a refresher and to welcome the new recruits as members of a very exclusive family. Because that’s what a DMO / DLO Board should be…a family of like-minded community boosters, joining together in a common effort to build the region bigger, better and more successful than ever.
And, what the hell? Invite select media to the orientation…because they need to hear the story over and over.
What DMO / DLOs do is a sensationally unique and complex art and science. Just because we are conversant in this world doesn’t mean it’s easy for others to instantly grasp the complexity and critical importance of this sector. It takes intentional work to build a Board (and professional staff).
As Matthew McConaughey famously suggested… ”Don’t half-ass it.”
‘Til next time,
Bill
