Question: My board chair is questioning a recent decision I made about a staff member’s performance. I thought supervising staff was my job. Can she, for example, tell me I have to reinstate him after I fired him? Answer: This
Ok, we sometimes must provide paid leave — did we get it right?
BlueAvacado.org is a top notch website for non-profit executive directors and board members. In this post Mike Bishop summarizes the requirements and when they were/are in effect. (Reprinted in whole.) Ask Rita: FFCRA Paid Leaves 2021—Help! by Mike Bishop J.D.
Be particular about Consumer Control
Consumer control is the foundation of Independent Living, and permeates the board, staff and management of Centers as well as the Statewide Independent Living Council (SILC). The requirements are clear: More than 50% (51% or more) of the board members
COVID-19 awkwardness -some social thoughts
It is hard to believe most of us have been limiting social contact and working from home for more than six months. All our emergency preparedness didn’t prepare most of us for this weird situation. And now we are entering
As you return to the office…
As your communities open up following the initial closures due to COVID-19, some centers have begun to open their doors, or at least open access to the Center a little bit. Here are some practices we are seeing (in keeping
Can I give staff more pay using CARES Act funds?
While the correct answer is “it depends”, my more honest reaction to this question is, “Do you think that is the intention of this funding?” Because, first and foremost, the funding is for the purpose of assisting your consumers —
Improve Your Ability to Work Remotely
As many of you have already discovered, working from home requires some upgrades in both hardware and software. Staff used to desktops are moving to laptops or tablets. Working with cloud-based documents or your consumer database may be new to
Staff training clips from archives
You might find it helpful to utilize some of the on-line resources for your staff meetings and staff training. Some center approach training by doing a short segment during each staff meeting. I suggest up to 30 minutes each. Here
Eight topics your new CIL executive director needs
Learn about the history and philosophy behind Independent Living. Go to https://www.ilru.org/il-history-and-philosophy-orientation-for-il-staff if you prefer video. Use https://www.ilru.org/training/introduction-independent-living-history-philosophy-for-new-cil-personnel-online-course if you prefer an on-line course. Go to https://www.ilru.org/training/know-your-resources-orientation-il-net-national-training-technical-assistance-center-for to learn how to navigate training options and our website. Email Technical Assistance
I’m retiring. How can I assist my successor?
We have talked about succession planning before — how an executive director can assist the board in a transition to a new executive director. I’d like to drill down to a very specific role that the out-going ED plays —