Non Profit Board Credibility
It’s All About Respect, Trust and
Believability
An associate of mine has authored a
powerful book entitled The Personal
Credibility Factor. One of the book reviewers commented on Sandy
Allgeier’s book by saying, “the new ‘PC’ isn’t Political Correctness — it’s
Personal Credibility”. This extremely well-written and thought-provoking book
made me think about Non Profit Boards — just what is the Personal Credibility of BOTH the board members and the
organization?
Think about it. We challenge the new board
members to write a “Belief Statement” and a “Lift Statement”, as well as
promoting the Vision, Mission, AND all-important Values of the
organization. We try to do our best to prepare the board members to be an
extension of the organization that they represent. But have we examined very
carefully what my associate Sandy states is at the core of Personal
Credibility: (1) Respect, (2) Trust, and
(3) Believability.
We need to determine if the Board Member
AND the Organization is TRULY “transparent” to the community as he/she goes
into the community to speak about the organization. And the big question: Is
the board member bringing credibility to their public presentations?
It’s important to know that personal
credibility is based on the types of things that people DO and that applies to
organizations as well. As Sandy comments “It’s what people do that form our
opinions, relationships, and ultimate decision of whether to trust and respect
them.”
People around us, in and out of the organization,
are always ‘observing’ — our actions are constantly under the microscope. What
may have taken years in developing solid public confidence can be dashed in a
moment because of actions, thus resulting in perceptions of distrust and
disrespect.
There is so much information in the book
that can be used for training sessions as well as many “food for thought” items
to make us step back and assess our Personal Credibility. Listed below is some
excellent food for thought, which can be the starting point for a board
training session.
The Seven Steps to Increase Credibility
(which should be the mantra for many organizations):
1. Know Your Stuff
2. Keep Commitments
3. Honor Confidences and Avoid Gossip
4. Know Yourself — the Good, the Bad, and
the Ugly
5. Choose to Value Others — the Good, and
Yes, the Bad, and the Ugly
6.
Ask More and Listen Most
7.
Create Credible Interactions
I’m convinced that her book should be required reading for
anyone who plans to sit on a board of directors and will be in the public’s eye
as they speak for and represent that organization.
