SPCA of Monterey County: Building a Successful Board

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1 SPCA of Monterey County: Building a Successful Board Compiled by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities and distributed to the field, September Visit the ASPCA National Outreach website for animal welfare professionals:

2 SPCA of Monterey County The SPCA of Monterey County is a non-profit animal welfare organization serving a county of 390,000 people and providing services for over 12,000 animals a year. Services include lost and found, pet adoption, humane education, low cost spay/neuter, humane investigations and operating the only wildlife rehabilitation center serving the county. In 2005, The SPCA pf Monterey County celebrated 100 years of caring for animals and those who love them. Stats Services provided for over 12,000 animals a year, including sheltered dogs, cats, exotics, pocket pets, livestock and wildlife. Approximately 2,400 companion animals adopted each year. Approximately 420 complaints a year handled by Humane Investigations Department. Over 2,000 animals a year, ranging from mountain lions to hummingbirds, admitted to the SPCA Wildlife Center for treatment and care. 3,360 spay/neuter surgeries a year performed at the Spay/Neuter Clinic SPCA animals prior to adoption, owned cats and dogs, and feral cats. How Cool is That? In 2000, The SPCA of Monterey County was in a catastrophic situation. The board of directors had no real structure; members had become actively involved in management; and poor financial oversight had put the future of the organization at risk. The hiring of a new executive director, with experience both as a board president and as senior management, launched three years of sweeping change that transformed the board into a model of classical form and function. As a result, the SPCA is now once again respected in the community, fiscally sound, and poised to launch a $9.2 million capital campaign to fund much needed physical improvements. Adopt or Adapt The transformation of the SPCA of Monterey County Board of Directors can serve as a blueprint for any organization desiring to build a board that functions appropriately and efficiently. The steps outlined here could work for a new organization setting up a board for the first time or for an organization interested in strengthening or redirecting a malfunctioning board. Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 2 of 8

3 SPCA of Monterey County: The Whole Story The SPCA of Monterey County has been serving animals and people for over 100 years. In 2000, the organization found itself on the brink of disaster with financial reserves nearly exhausted and a malfunctioning board of directors that had become heavily involved in day-to-day operations. This profile focuses on the process employed by the newly hired executive director, working hand-in-hand with a strong and process-oriented board president, to create a model board and bring The SPCA back to institutional health. Who They Are And What They Do Ingredients and Prep Work Step by Step Results Some Words of Wisdom Who They Are and What They Do The SPCA of Monterey County Gary Tiscornia, Executive Director Formed in 1905 to help livery animals and large numbers of stray dogs and cats about town, the SPCA of Monterey County now operates as an independent, donor supported open admission humane society. The organization s full range of animal welfare services includes humane investigations; sheltering and adoption of lost and surrendered pets, livestock, and exotic animals; low-cost spay/neuter, micro chipping and vaccinations; disaster response; humane education; wildlife rescue and rehabilitation; puppy and dog training; a behavior helpline and expert advice on animal related questions or concerns. In December, 2002, the SPCA joined with governmental shelters and private adoption organizations to form the Coalition for Companion Animals to end euthanasia of healthy adoptable animals in the county according to the terms of the Asilomar Accords. The SPCA actively pursues creative collaborations with other area nonprofits such as Meals on Wheels, the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, Delta Society and organizations serving homeless and temporarily displaced individuals to strengthen the human-animal bond, increase reverence for life and make Monterey a more humane place to live. In 2000, according to Executive Director Gary Tiscornia, the SPCA was in a catastrophic condition. A habit of burning through the organization s reserves to cover operations had created deep financial problems and members of the board had, for almost a year, become actively involved in day-to-day management. According to Tiscornia, who was interviewing for the Executive Director position at the time, the organization had about eleven months to live. With previous experience as the senior paid executive and also as a board president, Tiscornia had serious concerns. An in-depth meeting with then Board President Barbara Baldock convinced him that she was a very strong, process-oriented leader with whom he shared a vision of the way in which a board and paid staff should perform their respective roles. Tiscornia took the position, and, working closely with Baldock, began the arduous process of transforming the board and the organization. Within three years, the SPCA board had become a model of classic organization and high function. According to Tiscornia, strengthening of the board and developing a solid partnership between board and management made it possible for the SPCA to attract $300,000 in bridge funding to alleviate the immediate financial crisis and expand the donor base for long-term financial health. The organization is now well positioned to launch a planned $9.2 million capital campaign. Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 3 of 8

4 Ingredients and Prep Work Prerequisites A shared vision and mutual respect between the board president and the executive director. According to Tiscornia, they must be able to step out together to achieve the vision. A board president who is well-known and respected in the community; who can bring others to the table. A board president who clearly understands and enforces the division of responsibility between board and senior staff. Timeline According to Tiscornia, the board transformation took about three years. Much of that time was spent refining and streamlining reports and procedures to facilitate communication between board members and staff. Step by Step 1. Make sure the program is solid and then get the word out According to Baldock, who was board president when Tiscornia was hired, a former executive director had moved the SPCA from the open admission facility it had been throughout its nearly 100 year history to a No Kill facility. The change was not well understood or received in the community, prompting a whole series of organizational and financial crises. Tiscornia was hired with the understanding that he would transition the organization back to open admission, working cooperatively with the city and county to create a safer environment for animals in all area shelters. According to Tiscornia, changing back, which took 6 months of careful orchestration, received a lot of positive press from a reporter who understood the issues and took great care to report them accurately. The resulting solid programming re-established public trust and played a major role in attracting strong people to the board. 2. Actively recruit board members with governing experience and the ability to give and raise money. Look for team player. According to Tiscornia, Baldock mined the community for individuals who shared her understanding of board governance and would trust management to do a good job. She looked for individuals with compassion and pragmatism who held board positions at other area high profile organizations like the community fund or orchestra. That process continues. We look for the three W s work, wisdom, and wealth, current Board President Sherrie McCullough explains. That means reaching out to individuals with solid reputations in the community, board experience, and deep pockets. If those conditions are met, McCullough and Tiscornia spend time with the prospects to make sure they resonate with the mission and goals of the organization. The 2005 SPCA board listed 16 members. Among them, they held positions on 30 other boards of directors. The current board includes former Fortune 500 board members, philanthropists, and community leaders. 3. Clarify roles and establish trust Tiscornia and Baldock made it clear that the board s role was to define the ends to be reached but that management had complete authority over the means to those ends. To encourage trust on both sides, an ethic of transparency was adopted. Senior staff was invited to attend board meetings. Board members were encouraged to ask any staff member any question at any time. At the same time, it was made clear that board members were to refrain from directing staff in order to avoid compromising the executive director s accountability for staff performance. According to Tiscornia, all but one of the board members who had become involved in management during the preceding year stepped back as soon as he was hired. I was very proud of the way the board did that, he said. Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 4 of 8

5 4. Make sure the board has the information it needs to perform its governing role Tiscornia spent considerable time refining the reporting process and streamlining all reports to make them detailed enough to be useful but succinct enough to be easily digested. Board members now receive reports from the executive director, development director, community outreach director, director of operations and finance director before each meeting. Results Board Basics Here s what the SPCA Board looks like today: Size: Current maximum is 21 but that number will increase to 25 or more as the organization moves into a capital campaign. Director role: ex-officio with no vote Terms: two three year terms Meetings: 8 one-hour meetings a year. No meetings during the last month of each quarter. Run by the board president. Staff prepares agenda. Committees: Finance, Development, Investment, Audit (required by California law), Nominating, Strategic Planning (meets annually to review), Executive. A Policies Committee, which existed to draft organizational policies on such wide-ranging animal welfare issues as euthanasia, using animals for entertainment, and raising animals for consumption, was abolished during the board transformation. According to Tiscornia, while the board has policy-making authority, professional management now handles that role. The key, Tiscornia explains, is keeping the board informed on all policy matters and particularly making members aware, in advance, of any change that might become a hot-button in the community. Committee Structure: Members appointed by the board president with concurrence of the board. Chair must be board member. All committees are advisory only unless specific authority is delegated. Non-board members may serve on all advisory committees. Executive Director is ex-officio on all committees except Audit. Relevant senior staff attend meetings as liaison. Board focus: Governance, major donor development, setting strategic vision. Board training: All board members receive a detailed information packet which includes the mission and goals of the organization, the role of board members, by-laws, conflict of interest policy, and the organization s animal welfare policies. Role in operations: Board approves staff-prepared budget and monitors operations through financial performance, a one-page operations report, and senior management reports. Board members do not volunteer in the shelter. Role in fundraising: Development Committee members highly involved in major donor cultivation: identify major gift prospects, invite for lunches and tours, and participate in ask. All board members expected to make sacrificial gift, but that is a soft requirement that is not enforced. Financial oversight: Finance Committee meets quarterly with senior staff, reviews quarterly finances against budget and prior year and reports to full board. Committee also has first review of staffprepared budget. Board receives a streamlined financial report at each meeting. Code of Ethics: All California organizations are governed by the State Business and Professions Code. Critical Factors A series of very good board presidents, a competent executive director, and a strong sense of teamwork between the two. McCullough terms Tiscornia the best executive director I ve ever worked with while Tiscornia gives most of the credit for the organization s success to strong board leadership over the past five years. Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 5 of 8

6 Great attention to recruiting quality board members. According to Baldock, McCullough, one of the early additions to the board, was extremely well known in the community and able to bring a number of other strong people to the table. McCullough, who now serves as board president, considers the Nominating Committee to be the most important board committee and attracting good board members to be one of her most important functions. A clearly communicated separation of board work from management work. You don t want to beat around the bush about this, McCullough states. We are very clear about our expectations. Our task is not to meddle in management but to cultivate donors and board members. An open relationship and commitment to no surprises either way between the executive director and the board president. Tiscornia and the board president talk weekly or every other week between board meetings Efficient board meetings that last only one hour. Each meeting opens with a 15 minute presentation by one of the department heads followed by Q&A to keep board members informed. Stock agenda items are handled by consent at the beginning of the meeting. Only those items requiring it are brought up for discussion. Thinking Outside the Box Tiscornia had a clause included in his employment contract stipulating that the board would not get involved in day-to-day management of the organization. If Tiscornia believes that a member of the board or the board as a whole has overstepped its authority, he will write a letter to that effect. The board then has 30 days to correct the situation. If they fail to do so, he has the option of resigning and the board must give him a severance package of 6 months salary. That figure increases each year he remains with the organization to a limit of 12 months salary. According to Tiscornia, putting expectations into the contract negotiations was very useful." In order to recruit board members with experience in governance, SPCA leadership keeps track of board members about to term out at successful area nonprofits and goes after them. How They Feel About What They Did Tiscornia feels the board is now doing just what it should be doing holding our feet to the fire, asking tough questions, and serving as a resource. He said he is always looking for ways to maximize that resource flesh out what board members can offer in terms of counsel without inviting participation in operations. Their Next Steps The board is now actively involved in a $9.2 million capital campaign to raise funds for major facilities renovations. As McCullough s term as board president comes to an end, she is actively cultivating her successor so the teamwork between management and board will be maintained. The search continues for new board members who will meet the high standards set over the past five years. Some Words of Wisdom What Worked Making board meetings efficient and meaningful. According to Tiscornia, qualified board members want their service to make a difference. They don t want to spend long hours in board meetings dealing with the color of the paint on the wall. Look for board members who have a passion for the cause tempered by pragmatism that allows them to demand that the organization be operated like a well-run business, but one with a heart. Above all, never, ever compromising on quality, integrity, or ethics. Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 6 of 8

7 Be Prepared For People with too much passion and not enough pragmatism. According to McCullough, because animal welfare is such an emotional issue, organizations like the SPCA are challenged to find board members who care deeply about animals but are also realistic in their approach. In recruiting board members, it is often best to stay away from high profile people associated with other animal welfare organizations, especially those who have a reputation for radicalism. Some anxiety as the board focus changes from management to governance. According to Tiscornia, there were no major upheavals in the SPCA s transformation, but it took time and patience to rub off the rough edges. A reluctance on the part of most people to ask for money. Baldock explains that quality people often serve on more than one board but may not feel comfortable actively raising money for more than one organization. I only have so many friends and I can t have my hand in their pockets every month, she remarks. McCullough makes it clear, however, that an organization can be successful with just a few board members asking for money as long as the other are willing to help identify donor prospects. The board really only needs a few people who are comfortable making the ask as long as other board members actively identify board prospects. According to Tiscornia, term limits are a double edged sword. He anticipates losing some very good people but acknowledges the value of limits to term out poor performers and inject new blood. He wouldn t change the current system. Your Next Steps With the information we've provided, can you start a program like this one in your organization? Click here to send an to ASPCA National Outreach with your feedback. Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 7 of 8

8 SPCA of Monterey County Thumbnail Sketch SPCA of MontereyCounty 1002 Highway 68 P.O. Box 3058 Monterey, CA The mission of the SPCA of Monterey County is to assure compassionate and humane treatment of all animals in their community. The SPCA shelters homeless, neglected, and abused pets and livestock; provides humane education; investigates animal cruelty; rescues and rehabilitates injured wildlife; and aids domestic animals in distress. Staff 47 full time employees. The following senior staff report directly to the Executive Director: Director of Development, Director of Finance, Director of Operations, Director of Community Outreach. Approximately 350 active volunteers. Operating Budget $3.9 million Business Type 501(c) (3) nonprofit Another free resource provided by ASPCA and PetSmart Charities 8 of 8