Bringing Dan Arnett, our general manager, onboard this spring is an exciting step forward for your Co-op. So how does the Board manage and guide him and make sure he opens the grocery store we, the Owners, have all been dreaming of?
We have a plan for that!
In the co-op model, you, the Owners, guide and steer your Board of Directors, and the Board oversees the general manager. Eventually we oversee Dan through a document and model called Policy Governance, which sets guardrails (called Executive Limitations) for the general manager to act within, while working to fulfill our goals (called the Ends).
Right now, we're in a period of transitioning tasks and responsibilities to our GM and working toward the full Policy Governance model. And on the advice of co-op consultants at Firebrand and Food Co-op Initiative, we've written and presented a document to Dan called our Mission Transition Plan.
The Mission Transition Plan guides Dan during this critical pre-opening phase. It sunsets once the store is open and we'll move fully to the other Policy Register (which we're editing now too and will share before long).
The Mission Transition Plan lets the Board give Dan authority to get things done, while also giving us clear expectations about what he needs to achieve.
If you're a policy fan, do go read the document. If not, here are a few key takeaways:
In the co-op model, you, the Owners, guide and steer your Board of Directors, and the Board oversees the general manager. Eventually we oversee Dan through a document and model called Policy Governance, which sets guardrails (called Executive Limitations) for the general manager to act within, while working to fulfill our goals (called the Ends).
Right now, we're in a period of transitioning tasks and responsibilities to our GM and working toward the full Policy Governance model. And on the advice of co-op consultants at Firebrand and Food Co-op Initiative, we've written and presented a document to Dan called our Mission Transition Plan.
The Mission Transition Plan guides Dan during this critical pre-opening phase. It sunsets once the store is open and we'll move fully to the other Policy Register (which we're editing now too and will share before long).
The Mission Transition Plan lets the Board give Dan authority to get things done, while also giving us clear expectations about what he needs to achieve.
If you're a policy fan, do go read the document. If not, here are a few key takeaways:
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Dan is responsible for the project planning, budgeting and other oversight that gets the store built and open, and is responsible for reporting progress to the Board.
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The Board has adopted the Firebrand Reassessment Report as our path forward and Dan must meet the expectations set out in the report.
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He needs to build the store we've all dreamed of:
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Lots of local foods, in all departments! - Great customer service and a store that feels welcoming to all.
- Pricing solutions that fit the community.
- Transparent food information - where did it come from? how was it grown?
- Local hiring.
- Sustainable build-out and operations decisions (go bulk!) plus ways for customers to shop their
low/zero-waste values. - And of course, DELICIOUS food!
Four of your Board members sat down with Dan recently to talk through the document and answer any questions he had. It was a great session and we all feel like we're clearly pointing toward the same store. As Dan put it afterward, "You did hire the right person if you're looking for alignment."
It's wonderful to truly feel our general manager understands our Owners' dreams for our store, loves those goals too, and very importantly, he knows how to achieve them!
It's wonderful to truly feel our general manager understands our Owners' dreams for our store, loves those goals too, and very importantly, he knows how to achieve them!
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