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How To Succeed with Advisory Boards
An Interview with Steve Meisburg
by Mandy Rogers
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Municipal advisory boards are made up of dedicated citizens who devote time, energy and expertise to issues or causes that affect their city.
However, advisory boards without a clear mission or purpose not only are ineffective, but waste the time of board members, elected officials and city employees.
Former Tallahassee City Commissioner Steve Meisburg has firsthand knowledge of what makes advisory boards work. In 1999, he helped create Tallahassee’s Community Neighborhood Renaissance Partnership.
The partnership’s mission is to rebuild the community’s most distressed inner-city neighborhoods, and address both the physical and social needs of neighborhoods by using a holistic approach.
Apalachee Ridge Estates, an at-risk south-side Tallahassee neighborhood, has been the first to reap the benefits of the partnership. One of the cornerstones of the neighborhood’s revitalization is the Technology and Learning Resource Center, which has opened a new world to many residents who do not own computers or have Internet access. (For more information on this partnership, see the May/June 2003 issue of Quality Cities.)
The next Renaissance community, Providence, has a series of problems, such as crime and poverty, that will be addressed as part of its revitalization.
Meisburg, the chairman of the Partnership Board, said advisory boards are important to cities or projects, but often are overlooked or don’t receive the attention they deserve.
Meisburg commented, “These boards are invaluable.” He stressed that he is concerned when he learns that an elected or appointed official is unaware of a particular board or its work.
Meisburg said there are several factors that made his advisory board successful, and that can be used to help new and existing boards.
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Communication
The most important factor that keeps an advisory board running smoothly is regular communication with everybody involved with the board – members, city staff and elected officials.
As chairman of the Partnership Board, Meisburg worked with numerous organizations that offered their help and expertise to the effort. Included in the partnership are organizations such as Florida State University (FSU), Florida A&M University, Tallahassee Community College, Arvida Corporation, the City of Tallahassee, the Leon County Board of County Commissioners, the Leon County School Board, AmSouth Bank, Bank of America, Capital City Bank, the United Way of the Big Bend, the Apalachee Ridge Estates Neighborhood Association and Covenant Partners.
Forming the partnership took almost a year, but Meisburg said the most effective way to reach so many people, and to get them excited about a cause, is through direct and personal contact.
“For the Renaissance Partnership, I knew we could benefit from FSU’s vast resources, so I called the university’s president and met with the council of deans to let them know what the partnership is all about,” Meisburg said. “If cities can build advisory boards around the same philosophy, they will be successful.”
Meisburg said one of the worst scenarios is when advisory boards work for months – or even years – on recommendations that never get to the city commission, or are totally rejected.
“The outcome is a bunch of frustrated people who gave a lot of time and energy, and their voices were never heard,” Meisburg said.
He said that if advisory boards have regular communication in some form with the elected body, it is more likely that they will learn sooner rather than later if they are going in a direction that cannot be supported.
“At such time, they will have clear choices: continue in the same direction, alter the course, change membership, or disband,” Meisburg said.
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Clearly Defined Roles
Not all board members are appointed at the same time. Meisburg said it’s important to help orient new members, and to make sure each knows what is expected. Also, occasionally making sure existing members know what they are supposed to be doing can be beneficial.
“Every board should have some type of bylaws that defines what people’s roles and responsibilities are,” Meisburg said. “When people come on board, they need to know what to do and what not to do, and if the person is wandering astray, somebody needs to let them know.”
Each committee has a chairperson who leads the group. The person should be well informed, adept in leadership skills, tactful and organized, Meisburg said. “Leadership is critical.”
Clearly Defined Goals
It is important to have long-range goals that are assessed on a regular basis. “If your goals are clearly defined, it gives both the board and the government a sense of what the board is and where it’s going,” Meisburg said.
Having a clear mission and attainable goals also gives the board members a sense of importance. “A clear mission allows the members to know there is an important reason for being on that board,” Meisburg said. “This also gets members fired up and lets them know what they’re doing has a purpose.”
Elected Official Participation
It is important for elected officials to be involved somehow in the work of advisory boards. However, elected officials cannot sit on boards, and should not try individually to steer boards in a certain direction.
“It is meaningful to board members when elected officials make appearances at meetings and acknowledge their effort,” Meisburg said.
He said elected officials with an interest in the topic being addressed by a particular advisory board should naturally align themselves with that board. The participation of elected officials not only helps advisory boards stay on the right path, but also makes board members feel as if their work has meaning.
“Recognition is key – somehow the city and the elected officials need to convey appreciation to board members for the work,” Meisburg said. “Let people know they’re important and that their faithfulness to the city and government is a great service.”
A Sense of Purpose
Hot-button advisory boards usually are in the spotlight more than boards that have an ongoing mission. It’s important for all advisory boards to have a sense of importance.
“Although an advisory board’s topic may never be controversial, it works just as hard as boards which have issues that are in the spotlight,” Meisburg said. “No matter what the issue, the board needs to give the city commission a reason to get its arms around the problem.”
Meisburg recommends appointing a knowledgeable spokesperson for the board who can convey the board’s goals, mission and, eventually, its recommendations for the city.
Summing It Up
Based on the success of the Partnership Board, Meisburg’s methodology worked, and his suggestions can be applied to any city advisory board or committee.
“All these things made this project successful,” Meisburg said. “Most importantly, I made sure every single board member always knew what was going on and made sure each person was included in the process – I drew on those people for advocacy and resources and gave them credit.”
Mandy Rogers is a publications specialist with the Florida League of Cities.
Reprinted from Quality Cities March/April 2004
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