Monday, 25 June 2007
Policy Governance: alive and well and thriving
Val Moore reports from abroad from the International Policy Governance Association (IGPA) Conference - 20/24 June 2007, Washington DC, USA
Gathering of the Policy Governance World
I was one of several hundred delegates, mostly members of IPGA, who gathered in Washington for a stimulating and, for me, reassuring conference about Policy Governance®. It was just great to be in workshops and training sessions and chat informally with people who have been implementing Policy Governance for many years. I spoke to Board Members, Chairs and Chief Executives from local and regional government, hospitals & care centres, schools & colleges, cultural and community groups, not for profit organisations and from the corporate sector, all who have been successfully implementing Policy Governance in their organisations for many years.
The Oracle(s) Were Present
And the icing on the cake was also spending time talking with John and Miriam Carver who conceived and developed Policy Governance and who are rather quaintly but affectionately referred to as "the authoritative source".
Not 'Whether' but 'How'
I talked with Boards who are way past thinking about whether PG will help them and are well into effective implementation and discussing how to improve their "ends monitoring" and whether they should extend their "executive limitations" and what are the best ways to develop their "ownership linkage". This was heady stuff for the UKPGA members who currently spend more time on theory than practical implementation!
Support for the UK
The rest of the international policy governance community were delighted to hear what a good start we are making in the UK and are full of encouragement and support for our development. At the UKPGA first Annual meeting held in Washington on 19 June, the day before the Conference, we were amazed when we fed back the results of all our joint efforts this past 18 months to promote PG in the UK. Conference delegates from all over the world, but predominantly North America, were delighted to know we are holding a UKPGA Associates meeting in London on the evening of 13 December after the next UKPGA Board meeting. We were also encouraging the international PG community to coincide their next visit to the UK with the first UKPGA Conference which we are planning for 20 February 2008. (see the UKPGA website for more information)
PG Goes Global
IPGA has had its origins and therefore emphasis in North America but it is now becoming truly international with significant development work happening on the ground in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, China and the rest of the far Far East. There was a real feeling that Policy Governance is on the verge of critical mass (or the tipping factor - a new concept to me!) which will see the tangible results of the powerful influence of Policy Governance throughout corporate and not for profit organisations world wide.
The Knowledge Transfer - UK gets Caroline Oliver back
Rubbing shoulders with consultants who have dozens of clients introducing Policy Governance and with hundreds of organisations who are themselves implementing and sustaining Policy Governance is heartening and instructive. And one of the most encouraging news items for UKPGA members is that Caroline Oliver of Good to Govern, a founder Chair of the IPGA and co-author with John Carver of "Corporate Boards that Create Value" is definitely moving back to the UK from Canada in September of this year.
Read More About It
You can read more about the IPGA Conference on their website and the UKPGA will very shortly be updating their website with the outcomes of the Annual Meeting. I've come home positively inspired and ready to talk to absolutely anyone about how Policy Governance can help their organisation be more effective.
The M-A-C Partnership has exciting plans for further development of Policy Governance in the UK, so if you are interested in hearing more, contact me. If you want to know more about the UKPGA, contact Stuart Emslie ceo@ukpga.org.uk
The concept of Policy Governance® follows the model developed and defined by John and Miriam Carver as: "an integrated set of concepts and principles that describes the job of any governing board". The Carver model is "a collection of principles and concepts that make sense as a whole". For listings of the Carvers' qualifications and publications see www.carvergovernance.com.