Leadership and Governance at Retreat Centers
Retreat centers are facing a period of unprecedented transition, including increased employee turnover and an unpredictable market. On this Community Call, we discussed the pain points for retreat center leadership and board—how they’re rising to meet ongoing challenges and embracing intergenerational and intercultural leadership. We identified resources, team best practices, and ways to smooth some of these difficult transitions.
Culture Shifts
Retreat centers are still reeling from the impacts of Covid, among other challenges. One community member summed it up succinctly:
“Thriving is the goal, but we’re still in survival mode.”
For many retreat center leaders, the path towards thriving means addressing major cultural shifts:
Leaning into Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Many centers are educating themselves about social justice issues and are reframing their organizational culture around JEDI practices.
One center is working with land acknowledgement by reaching out to local tribes. They’re working alongside tribal members to restore access to land and to tell the truth about tribal members’ experiences.
Bridging the generation gap: Generational divides can come “pre-loaded” with negative assumptions and can increase tensions between individuals and groups.
One center addresses these tensions by fostering “a culture of honest conversation, done openly (not behind closed doors).”
Embracing the lessons of the pandemic: Society is pushing to “get back to normal” after the height of the pandemic closures, but many people are struggling to accept that “normal” is different now.
Many retreat center leaders agree: Our mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing has suffered greatly over the last few years—and we need to prioritize these aspects of wellness as we move forward.
“The pandemic taught us lessons and we shouldn’t be going back to pre-pandemic norms. We need to unpack the lessons learned and what it means for our daily practices.”
Retreat Center Board Members
Board members can help retreat centers thrive by becoming more actively engaged. Suggestions from the community include:
Be an ambassador: Talk about your retreat center with the outside groups you interact with. Introduce retreat center leadership to people in your network. Offer resources and make connections. Be proactive.
Stay at your retreat center: In some places, board members aren’t present at their center with any frequency. This means they may not be deeply in tune with the center and its needs. It’s helpful to experience what guests experience. Find out firsthand what your center is like.
Volunteer at your retreat center: Don’t just have the guest experience. See what it’s like to lend a hand. Volunteer during the high season—help in the kitchen, lead hikes, prepare spaces. By spending time working at your center, you’ll come into board meetings with a deeper understanding of what you represent.
Understand that staff needs operational support: Many board members sign on to work in ministry or community building, not operations. But the practical reality, especially at aging retreat centers, is that something breaks every day. Facilities need upkeep and staff needs support in that area.
It may help to have a separate board that deals specifically with operational concerns, but the logistics of having two boards can become complicated.
Getting the Most Out of Meetings
“How fruitful is it just to get together and talk about the big picture? How do you do it enough without doing it too much?”
Community Call participants had suggestions for streamlining the approach to meetings:
One retreat center uses dynamic governance in conjunction with board process to take their meetings from “rambling discussion” to “a point of clarity.” This process is good for making sure everyone is heard, but it doesn’t block forward motion by insisting on total consensus. This method utilizes board members who are keepers of the process, who guide the flow and focus of discussions.
Finding shared language: Look for terms to emerge in meetings (e.g.: staff needs “support”). Find those terms, then loop back and ask everyone individually, “What does ‘x’ mean to you?” (e.g.: “support” means “more staff members,” “more down time,” “more pay,” “more education.”) Ask: Does the proposed solution address everyone’s individual definition of “x”? Make sure you’re speaking the same language.
So much time in board meetings can be spent on listening to reports with no time to address important issues. Adopting a method of “strategic discussion” is helpful in these scenarios.
Centers using strategic discussion formulate a “consent agenda” before meetings. Everything is sent out ahead of time, approved, and a set amount of time is reserved to discuss specific issues that need to be addressed. This gives board members an increased sense of ownership for where the center is going.
Example: A business plan is proposed. A strategic discussion asks members to consider: Given this plan, how do we implement it? Who’s in charge of what? How does the board see us working with the plan, especially in terms of delegation of responsibility?
Questions can also be more philosophical: Are we living our mission? How are we living our mission?
Give out the questions ahead of time, so board members know what to expect and are primed to have input/answers. This is a good way to get board members engaged in generating ideas and change.
In strategic discussions, always identify next steps and the main focus for the next leg of the journey.
Honoring Founding Principles While Embracing Change
At this pivotal point in history, retreat center leaders are finding ways to acknowledge their center’s roots while encouraging growth into the future.
RCC community members suggest:
Asking questions is imperative.
What is core to your retreat center’s essence? What has to be preserved or protected?
What does your retreat center’s future look like?
Given that the world has changed so much, what do your constituents want now? How your values are expressed may change based on what people want now vs. then.
Open up the conversation to make room for both the roots and the future. It can’t just be about who you used to serve, but also about who you want to serve.
Keep asking again and again.
Find ways to tell your retreat center’s story. Earning the trust of guests and staff alike may mean being able to own a difficult past—and share the story of the changes you’re making. Let people know the history of the place and also the direction your center is going.
New leaders at established retreat centers offer their insight on transitions:
Respect the original ministry or business plan, but be willing to explore new avenues. Redefine what works, and take what’s working into the future. Ask: What do we do well and how do we enhance it? Trust that if the work is bearing fruit, it will continue to grow.
Be open to what the younger generation is bringing, and find a way to integrate and evolve.
Ask: Why is a rule a rule? Why do we have it? Can the rule be adapted, changed, or brought forward in a responsible way? Sometimes that means having to work with the founders to shift the culture.
Believe in the mission of the retreat center and what they stand for (including how they treat employees). It’s not for a new person to come in and change everything on day one.
Develop a team, be a team. Don’t be afraid to lean on others who have a diversity of strengths.
Join RCC’s New Facebook Group
Do you work in leadership at retreat center? Would you like to connect with the RCC community for more insights and support?
RCC has launched a private Facebook group for retreat center professionals to connect as peers, learn, share, collaborate, and socialize together. This space is for you and it’s open now!
Notes
Follow the link below to access additional meeting notes.
