Exceptional Boards: Strengthening the Governance Team
Event Information
Date(s):
Jan 29, 2026 - Jan 30, 2026
Location:
Ponte Vedra Inn & Club
200 Ponte Vedra Blvd.
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082
United States
CAE Credits:
0
Member Price:
$1,265.00
NonMember Price:
$1,645.00
Description
Up to 11.75 CAE Credits forthcoming
Exceptional Boards is an intensive two-day workshop for CEOs and their elected officers to explore strategies for strengthening their working relationship and enhancing the board's performance. Designed specifically for leadership teams, it provides an engaging learning environment where CEOs and elected leaders together will gain insight and resources to improve the effectiveness of board operations and create a strong and vibrant governance team. It is the one program that coaches you on how to build a board that understands its role, fulfills its responsibility, demonstrates visionary leadership, and ultimately leads the organization it represents to new heights.
The workshop covers:
- Strategies for building a cohesive board
- Roles and responsibilities of the CEO and the board
- Creating an effective CEO/board chair relationship
- Developing a leadership team action plan
Exceptional Boards offers you a rare opportunity to step away from the day-to-day routine and discover fresh ideas and approaches for enhancing board leadership. You'll benefit from the facilitators’ knowledge and expertise, but this highly interactive program also engages participants in exercises with their teams. Be prepared to roll up your sleeves and engage in open and honest discussions with your officers.
Please note: This program is designed for team participation, requiring at least one staff professional and one board leader to jointly attend.Accommodations
Ponte Vedra Inn & Club
200 Ponte Vedra Blvd.
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082
Phone: 866-890-6205
Room rate: $299 ++
Cut off: January 12, 2026
ASAE's In-person event Vaccination Policy
Speaker Info
Mary M. Byers
President, Mary Byers Inc
Mary Byers is coauthor of Race for Relevance: Five Radical Changes for Associations and Road to Relevance: Five Strategies for Competitive Associations and hosts the Successful Associations Today podcast. She served as a staff executive for two associations before starting her consulting business in 1998.
Mark T. Engle, CAE
AMC Principal, Association Management Center
Mark Engle is a principal with Association Management Center in Chicago, headquarters to 31 associations with a staff of more than 230 talented professionals. Mark studied nonprofit governance and received his doctor of management degree in 2011 from Case Western Reserve University. A frequent author and speaker on governance and high-performing organizations, he served as a CEO for trade associations and professional societies for 29 years. He is a fellow of ASAE and the Mandel Center for Nonprofit Leadership (Case Western Reserve University) and a BoardSource certified governance trainer. Mark has participated in more than 300 board meetings during his career. Written from their 2019 ground-breaking ASAE Foundation governance research, Mark and Will Brown, PhD (Texas A&M University) released a new book, Recruit the Right Board: Proven Processes for Selecting Critical Competencies.
Accessibility
ASAE is committed to providing an outstanding experience for all participants. We strive for full access to the activities of these events based on an awareness of participants' needs and appropriate planning. Please refer to the ASAE Meetings Accessibility Policy. Accessibility accommodations relating to mobility, hearing, vision, or other areas may be provided.
We ask that requests for reasonable accommodations be made as early as possible, and well in advance of the event via the registration process. Onsite requests will be accommodated to the best of our ability; however, available resources may be limited. Please email Learning & Meetings to request specialized accommodation for this program.
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Agenda
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Please note: Agenda may change.
Thursday, January 29, 2026
Governing and Managing in the Association World7:30 – 8:30 a.m.
Registration and Breakfast8:30 – 10:15 a.m.
Welcome, Introductions, Overview, and ContextAssociation Trends and Emerging Governance Challenges
10:15 – 10:30 a.m.
Networking Break10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
The Board’s Ethical, Fiduciary and Accountability RoleCharacteristics and Principles of Exceptional Boards
12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Assessing the Strengths and Needs of Your BoardBuilding an Effective CEO/Board Chair Partnership
2:30 – 2:45 p.m.
Networking Break2:45 – 4:00 p.m.
Defining Mutual Expectations Between the Board Chair and the CEO4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
ReceptionFriday, January 30, 2026
Collaborative Board-Building Tasks7:30 – 8:30 a.m.
8:30 – 10:15 a.m.
BreakfastEffective Board Recruiting, Onboarding, Communicating, and Disciplining
Capitalizing on Your Face-to-Face Board Meeting Time
10:15 – 10:30 a.m.
Break10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Driving Organizational Performance12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:00 – 3:15 p.m.
Tools and Approaches for Board and CEO AssessmentsBurning Questions
3:15 – 3:30 p.m.
Review and Adjourn
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Policies