Better CEO-Board Relations: Practical Advice for Successful Partnership

Karen Gardner, Editor

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147 pages, softcover, 6" x 9"
AHA Order Number: 196901
ISBN: 978-1-55648-341-7
AHA Member Price: $36.00
Nonmember Price: $45.00

Among all the duties health care boards must oversee and execute, none is more critical to the organization's long-term success than the working relationship with the CEO. It has the greatest impact on the board's ability to fulfill its fiduciary duty and mission to the community. This book provides examples of how to create, sustain and evolve that relationship to become the kind of forward-thinking leadership team that encourages new ideas and challenging debate.

The Message

The best boards and CEOs function as a synergistic team, striking an optimal balance between setting and executing organizational policy. This book can help you create that synergy, find that balance, and improve communication between the board and the CEO, learning how to brainstorm innovations, change unproductive patterns and habits, and foster new levels of mutual trust and respect.

What's Inside

Better CEO-Board Relations has gathered 15 of the best recent articles from Trustee magazine that cover the CEO-board life cycle from CEO recruitment to executive compensation and address communication, leadership and the board chair-CEO relationship along the way. You'll not only benefit from the perspectives of many health care governance and leadership experts, but also find advice that applies to the particular issues and challenges facing your board.

Comments from Reviewers

"This book should be at the top of every hospital trustee's governance reading list. Packed with insightful, useful, and highly readable tips and information, it's a literal guidebook for trustees to navigate their way to a more productive, high-performance board-CEO relationship. Long on practical, implementable ideas and strategies on everything from recruitment to compensation, evaluation and motivation, this book is a must read for every trustee who understands the importance of building board-CEO unity, focus, and leadership."
Larry Walker, Principal, The Walker Company, Lake Oswego, OR

"Through real-life examples and industry insights, Karen Gardner has created a manual hospital boards can use to maximize the potential for the board-CEO partnership. Whether you are a new member of a board or a long-time board attempting to fine-tune your governance process, this book will give you the information you need to be successful. You'll want to keep a copy at home and in the boardroom!"
Rulon F. Stacey, PhD, FACHE, President and CEO, Poudre Valley Health System, Fort Collins, CO

"In today's turbulent health care environment, it is more important than ever for board-CEO relationships to be at their peak. A successful partnership team will be able to think strategically and act decisively for the advancement of the hospital. This book will help both board members and CEOs recognize the difference between governance and management, an essential step toward building that peak team relationship. In addition, the content touches on numerous other factors essential to the creation of a smooth-running, dynamic health care organization."
Errol L. Biggs, PhD, FACHE, Director, Graduate Programs in Health Administration, University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, Denver, CO

"WOW! With Open Windows between CEOs and boards your organization and community can win big time. This book provides the necessary insight for all parts of the team to make WOW a happening. It is a 'must read' for directors and CEOs."
Leo Petit, retired CEO and current board member, Brunswick Community Hospital, Supply, NC

Contents

About the Editor
Foreword by George F. Lynn
Preface

Part One - CEO Recruitment
What Kind of CEO Will Your Hospital Need Next? A Model for Succession Planning - Andrew N. Garman and J. Larry Tyler
Succession Planning: The Art of Transferring Leadership - Jordan Hadelman and Elaina Spitaels-Genser
The Art of Interviewing Your Next CEO - David W. Thompson and Nancie Noie Thompson
Managing CEO Transition - John R. Gardner

Part Two - Communication
Behind Closed Doors: Should the Board Hold Executive Sessions? - Laurie Larson
Tough Love: Ten Questions to Ask Your CEO - Paul B. Hofmann and Wanda J. Jones
Executive Sessions as Standard Operating Procedure - Eric D. Lister, M.D., and Carolyn Jacoby Gabbay

Part Three - CEO Leadership
Orchestrating the New Leadership: What It Takes to Be a CEO Today - Patrick Plemmons
Your CEO: Are You Short-Staffed or Shortsighted? - Laurie Larson
Leading by Listening: How Scripps Health Turned Defeat Around - Laurie Larson

Part Four - The Board Chair and the CEO
Side by Side: Communication Is Key to a Successful CEO-Board Chair Partnership - Jan Greene
Synergy in Motion: The Board Chair and CEO Relationship - Elizabeth D. Becker-Reems

Part Five - Executive Compensation
CEO Measurement and Evaluation: The Three P's - Claudia Wyatt-Johnson and Edward Bancroft
Calibrating Executive Compensation - Claudia Wyatt-Johnson and Christopher J. Bennett
Avoiding Scandal: Recommended Practices for Board Executive Compensation Committees - Michael W. Peregrine, Ralph E. DeJong, and Timothy J. Cotter

Index