{"id":12752,"date":"2024-06-04T06:00:09","date_gmt":"2024-06-04T06:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/?p=12752"},"modified":"2026-06-23T09:40:03","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T09:40:03","slug":"the-three-stewardship-imperatives-of-fit-for-purpose-association-boards-part-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-three-stewardship-imperatives-of-fit-for-purpose-association-boards-part-i\/","title":{"rendered":"The Three Stewardship Imperatives of Fit-for-Purpose Association Boards: Part I"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"12752\" class=\"elementor elementor-12752\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-20186e6c elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"20186e6c\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-2bc76243\" data-id=\"2bc76243\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3661ecb9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3661ecb9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong><em>AUTHOR&#8217;S ATTESTATION: This article was written entirely by Jeff De Cagna AIMP FRSA FASAE, a human author, without using generative AI.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>As of this article\u2019s publication date (6\/4\/24), there are <strong>2036 days<\/strong> remaining in The Turbulent Twenties, and <strong>211 days<\/strong> until this decade\u2019s midpoint on January 1, 2025.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>With these two overlapping time frames becoming inexorably shorter<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>\u2014<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>and the impact of myriad social, technological, economic, environmental, and political [STEEP] factors and forces growing in intensity<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>\u2014<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>association boards must move immediately to become fit for purpose.<\/em><\/strong> To inspire our community\u2019s most senior decision-makers to act with intention and meet this increasingly urgent challenge, my next three columns will explain the foundational imperatives association boards must adopt right away to build new capacity and confidence as they confront the powerful dynamics already shaping their associations\u2019 futures for both better and worse.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Defining Stewardship<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>These three imperatives are situated in the context of stewardship. For association boards, stewardship is the shared commitment to leave the systems for which they are responsible better than how they found them for the benefit of stakeholders and successors. It is important to ground our understanding of stewardship in its three core elements:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Agency<\/strong><strong>\u2014<\/strong>As their associations\u2019 primary stewards, boards must direct their agency, i.e., the ability to choose the outcomes they want to pursue and act to achieve them, toward the future. Unfortunately, many association boards have <a href=\"https:\/\/4sightfir.st\/associationboardssixtoughestdecisionspartI\"><strong>surrendered their agency<\/strong><\/a> to detrimental orthodox beliefs\u2014the deep-seated assumptions we make about how the world works\u2014that are persistent barriers to intentional learning and effective decision-making.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Vulnerability<\/strong><strong>\u2014<\/strong>In the struggle with the demands of their stewardship roles, board directors\/officers may experience an understandable emotional reaction to their own vulnerability and that of the systems for which they are responsible. By demonstrating humility, curiosity, and empathy, board directors\/officers can work together to ensure vulnerability is a shared burden Instead of each individual shouldering the considerable weight of stewardship alone.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Wayfinding<\/strong><strong>\u2014<\/strong>Navigating this turbulent decade\u2019s next 2000+ days\u2014not to mention <a href=\"https:\/\/4sightfir.st\/TheThreateningThirtiesPartI\"><strong>The<\/strong><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/4sightfir.st\/TheThreateningThirtiesPartII\"><strong>Threatening<\/strong><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/4sightfir.st\/TheThreateningThirtiesPartIII\"><strong>Thirties<\/strong><\/a> ahead\u2014will require association boards to find their way without a reliable map. Boards cannot control the futures facing their organizations, nor can they \u201cfuture-proof\u201d their way out of them. Instead, boards must pursue ongoing discovery and embrace serendipity by remaining vigilant for emerging possibilities to shape different and better futures.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In this column, I will explore attention as responsibility, which is the first stewardship imperative. The other two imperatives\u2014adaptation as renewal and anticipation as resilience\u2014will be the subjects of Parts II and III respectively.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Imperative #1: Attention as Responsibility<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong><em>The first stewardship imperative for fit-for-purpose boards is to regard their attention as the highest form of responsibility to the association. <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In the words of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Simone_Weil\"><strong>Simone Weil<\/strong><\/a>, the 20<sup>th<\/sup> century French philosopher, \u201cattention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.\u201d This is a meaningful way to describe the admirable dedication of association directors\/officers to voluntary service. Nevertheless, 21<sup>st<\/sup> century circumstances require fit-for-purpose boards to go further and make plain that inherent in the choice to serve on a fit-for-purpose association board today is the binding obligation to bring the maximum level of individual and collective attention possible to the work.<\/p>\n<p>Association boards are overwhelmingly composed of highly successful and busy people, and our organizations must show respect and support as they seek to make the best use of their available time. In The Turbulent Twenties, however, it is board attention that is more essential, more limited, and more valuable than time. Without the sustained focus of irreplaceable human cognitive capabilities to the board\u2019s work, there can be no fiduciary duty, thoughtful judgment, or effective decision-making. In short, there can be no agency.<\/p>\n<p>Board attention is much more than an applied resource. It is vital to the enduring pursuit of intentional learning needed to build a robust understanding of a full range of plausible futures for the association, and develop a shared orientation to the board\u2019s collective endeavor as stewards working on behalf of the industry or profession, stakeholders, and successors. Given the unfolding risks and threats facing every association, there is no higher form of responsibility than the full devotion of director\/officer attention to the requirements of fit-for-purpose board service.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Making the Connection to Fit-for-Purpose Core Convictions and Habits of Mind<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>In three articles published in 2023, I offered six <a href=\"https:\/\/i4g0r4z.sharing.bublup.com\/ui\/landing_page?item_id=001-i-48a64d91-acd8-4174-9e52-72190a555f1e\"><strong>core convictions<\/strong><\/a> and six <a href=\"https:\/\/4sightfir.st\/AssociationBoardsMustBecomeMorePartI\"><strong>habits<\/strong><\/a> of <a href=\"https:\/\/4sightfir.st\/AssociationBoardsMustBecomeMorePartII\"><strong>mind<\/strong><\/a> for fit-for-purpose association boards. The stewardship imperative of attention as responsibility connects directly with the first two core convictions and habits of mind:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Accept the burdens of board service\/expect collective responsibility\u2014<\/strong>Attention as responsibility is an integral part of the core conviction of accepting the burdens of board service. Irrespective of how boards were composed in the past, serving on an association board today and in the years ahead <strong><em>cannot and must not<\/em><\/strong> <strong><em>be<\/em><\/strong> a vanity exercise or a reward for member loyalty. Every current and potential director\/officer must make a clear-eyed assessment of their readiness to perform to the necessary standard, along with their willingness to do so in a collaborative manner with their board colleagues, staff partners, and other contributors. Board agency resides in the full group and the habit of mind of expecting collective responsibility includes focusing collective attention to ensure that underlying individual agendas do not override the group\u2019s explicit commitment to collaborative action for the benefit of stakeholders and successors.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Focus on intentional learning\/thinking and acting beyond orthodoxy\u2014<\/strong>As described above, attention as responsibility is critical to sustaining the core conviction of intentional learning, which is a disciplined and rigorous process of sense-making, meaning-making, and decision-making. In each phase of this process, board directors\/officers must concentrate their attention on exploring difficult questions, listening carefully to divergent perspectives and dissenting voices, and accepting disquieting information as a basis for action. Intentional learning also includes adopting the habit of mind of thinking and acting beyond orthodoxy. Orthodox beliefs must remain a primary locus of board attention to ensure they do not interfere with intentional learning by creating complacency, inducing inertia, or intensifying risk aversion, all of which compromise the board\u2019s agency.<br>\n<div class=\"x_gmail_default\"><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Next Column<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong><em>In my next column, I will explore the second stewardship imperative for fit-for purpose association boards: adaptation as renewal.<\/em><\/strong> Until then, please stay well and thank you for reading.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT:<\/em><\/strong><strong> It is a true honor to collaborate with the Association Forum of Chicagoland to present&nbsp;The Fit-for-Purpose Association Board Director Learning Series\u2014the association community\u2019s first-ever dedicated learning and development experience specifically for current and aspiring board directors\u2014beginning in September 2024. To learn more about the Series,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.associationforum.org\/mainsite\/events\/fit-purpose\">please visit the Association Forum site<\/a>.&nbsp;<em>(FYI, there is a registration fee to participate in the Series and I am being compensated for my involvement as the Series designer and instructor.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><em><div class=\"clear\"><\/div><div class=\"author-info row\"><div class=\"col col-3\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-img\" src=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/07\/Jeff-De-Cagna-web-optimized-headshot.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div><div class=\"col col-9\"><div class=\"author-info-content\"><h3>About The Author<\/h3>\n\t\t\t Jeff De Cagna AIMP FRSA FASAE<\/em><\/strong><em>, executive advisor for Foresight First LLC in Reston, Virginia, is an association contrarian, foresight practitioner, governing designer, stakeholder and successor advocate, and stewardship catalyst. In August 2019, Jeff became the 32nd recipient of ASAE\u2019s Academy of Leaders Award, the association\u2019s highest individual honor given to consultants or industry partners in recognition of their support of ASAE and the association community.\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div> <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Jeff can be reached at&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"mailto:jeff@foresightfirst.io?Subject=Association%20Adviser\"><strong><em>jeff@foresightfirst.io<\/em><\/strong><\/a><em>, on LinkedIn at&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/jeffonlinkedin.com\/\"><strong><em>jeffonlinkedin.com<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, <em>or on Twitter\/X&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.twitter.com\/dutyofforesight\"><strong><em>@dutyofforesight<\/em><\/strong><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this column belong solely to the author.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Photo courtesy of eamesBot\/<a href=\"http:\/\/Shutterstock.com\" target=\"_blank\">Shutterstock.com<\/a>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>AUTHOR&#8217;S ATTESTATION: This article was written entirely by Jeff De Cagna AIMP FRSA FASAE, a human author, without using generative AI. As of this article\u2019s publication date (6\/4\/24), there are 2036 days remaining in The Turbulent Twenties, and 211 days until this decade\u2019s midpoint on January 1, 2025. With these two overlapping time frames becoming [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":151,"featured_media":12753,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,1434],"tags":[1174,576,1522],"class_list":["post-12752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-duty-of-foresight","tag-association-board","tag-association-community","tag-the-duty-of-foresight"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Three Stewardship Imperatives of Fit-for-Purpose Association Boards: Part I - Association Adviser<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"With these two overlapping time frames becoming inexorably shorter\u2014and the impact of myriad social, technological, economic, environmental, and political [STEEP] factors and forces growing in intensity\u2014association boards must move immediately to become fit for purpose.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-three-stewardship-imperatives-of-fit-for-purpose-association-boards-part-i\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Three Stewardship Imperatives of Fit-for-Purpose Association Boards: Part I - 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