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SynerVisionLeadership.org I 9
individual needs or desires. Consensus
is a resource to move disagreement
from conflict into creative engagement.
This model is counterintuitive because
we have been taught that defining core
values is the norm. Moving into a new
pattern of thinking means establishing
a new architecture of engagement
first. I mentioned consensus, which
is commonly misunderstood as
compromise, as a form of creative problem
solving in setting goals. I regard consensus
as win/win and compromise as lose/lose. In
compromise, everyone gives up something in
order to reach agreement. Consensus is using
divided opinions, that might create a division
in a vote and in the board, to formulate
a better decision for the benefit of the
organization; the theory of having an uneven
number of board members to break a tie vote
actually creates more conflict. Consensus is a
decision reached through group process and
backed by relationship.
Core values are an essential element in board
alignment and a critical step in qualifying
potential board members. If personal and
organizational values do not align, that
person is not a good fit for the organization’s
board and most likely not fit for any position
of leadership in which decisions will impact
the values of the organization.
Use a small effort in paying a small upfront
cost, rather than paying a higher cost in
unraveling destructive conflict later.
Hugh Ballou, SynerVision Leadership Foundation’s
Founder and President, is the Transformational
Leadership Strategist TM and Corporate Culture Architect
working with visionary CEOs, pastors, and nonprofit
leaders and their teams to develop a purpose driven
high performance collaboration culture that significantly
increases productivity, profits, and job satisfaction.
Nonprofit Boards
Connected byValues, Guided by Principles
“A nonprofit board is looking after the
governance of the organization and
safeguarding its mission. As a board
member, I feel this responsibility even
more keenly as it is even more critical
in difficult economic times and where
headlines are creating doubts in the minds
of donors and stakeholders.” - Lucy E.
Marcus, Professor of Leadership and
Governance at IE Business School
Organizations often develop a list
of core values as a critical basis for
strategic planning. These core values, written
or unwritten, frequently become a vague
memory as the organization moves into
implementation of the create the
values, feel good about them, and then put
them away to ignore because we are too busy.
Conflict then arises when well-intentioned
people get into disagreement while moving
into implementation. Core values, are
essential in identifying and attracting like-
minded people to a common cause, but you
also need guiding principles.
Psychiatrist Murray Bowen developed eight
concepts of leadership based on leaders’
differentiation of self within a group
emotional system and understanding self
by understanding their family of origin.
Bowen Family Systems emphasizes guiding
principles as a fundamental part of this.
Organizations, like individuals, are created
differently and are led by unique and
individualized guiding principles informed
and supported by core values.
When working with nonprofit boards, I
often discover that board members have
lost track of the organization’s core values
and have never defined how they will make
decisions on behalf of the organization. After
conducting an exercise to review and revise
their core values, the group discovers that
working through conflict has a pathway.
In my experience, core values are static and
guiding principles are active.
Here’s a list of typical Core Values:
• Quality
• Excellence in Service
• Integrity
• Value
• Creativity
In contrast, here’s a list of GuidingPrinciples
constructed from those same core values to
guide consistency in decisions:
• We will develop and maintain the highest
standard of quality in our culture, services,
and processes with a regular scheduled
process for evaluation, revision, and
recommitment to those standards.
• Our services and products are created
and delivered with the highest standard
of excellence possible – no exceptions, no
compromise.
• We will not accept money from any source
that intends to compromise our standards
of excellence.
• Integrity is reflected throughour leadership
decisions, personal interactions, respect
for all persons, and personal conduct
within and outside the organization.
• We demonstrate value in our management
of funds, use of time, commitment to
deadlines, and respect of individuals over
their use and donations.
• Creativity rules when seeking the best
choices that benefit the organization over
Hugh Ballou
Board Development