Why do association boards struggle? There are a lot of culprits people point to: the board's too large, or too small. Or it term-limits great volunteer leaders into oblivion, or it does not have term limits. Or it's too geographically dispersed, or not global enough. And on and on.
Practically speaking, though, the problem is simple: Boards are made up of human beings, and human beings in a group generally want to get along—which is not the same thing as saying they want to work together to reach consensus on a problem.
As long as I have been writing about associations, I have been writing about dysfunctional boards. Thus, the broad problem that executive coaches Irina Cozma and Elena Rodighiero outline in their Harvard Business Review piece, “Is Your Board Too Collegial?" isn't new. But it does benefit from emphasizing the nature of group dynamics, and how they can subtly undermine what a board needs to achieve—especially when it looks like they're all pulling together.
Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.