Journey to transformation

SEPTEMBER 30, 2006 AS NURSES, we have always recognised the value of our stories. This is the story of my journey, as step by step we transformed the National League for Nursing. 1998 I began my tenure as the CEO of the NLN in January 1998. Though I could not Imagine a world without it, the NLN I found was an organization that had lost ils way. Fraught with fiscal irregularities, dysfunctional governance structures, staff incompetence, and archaic processes and systems, the NLN had lost focus on its core mission of nursing education and its unique strategic niche among national nursing organizations. Looking back, it's hard to imagine how I survived my first year. I don't think I was naive. After all, I had many years of experience as an association executive in the national office of the American Cancer Society. And I did the normal due diligence. I knew that I would be facing formidable challenges, but what I actually faced was another matter altogether. The Board of Governors did not agree on the meaning of organizational success. It turned over every two years and so did its priorities. Poor decisions were made because meaningful information and disclosure of the true state of affairs by staff were lacking. I believed that the NLN needed to fully embrace a knowledge-based shared governance model. But first we had to completely restructure governance and staff processes, revise bylaws, and redress the balance of influence between the board and staff. I was extremely fortunate that Anna Kanas was there. I cannot imagine a more talented, hard-working person. She was knowledgeable about all aspects of the NLN and she is respected and admired by all who have ever had contact with her. Her immediate support was priceless to me, especially in those difficult early days. The NLN was in danger of being evicted so I began the search for a new location my second month on the job. With the NLN's huge debt and no credit, it was my personal American Express card that paid the bills for several years. And God was looking out for us. My first bid was for the 94th floor of the north tower of the World Trade Center, but they would not accept our credit. By year's end, we had moved to our current home at 61 Broadway, negotiated a settlement with our former landlord for a savings of $12 million, created the plan for organizational excellence, identified the NLN's core competencies, reduced staff by more than half, and reorganized in business units. RUTH D. CORCORAN, EdD, RN, began her tenure as CEO of the NLN in January 1998. 1999 Year two began with the start of the most rewarding and productive professional partnership of my career when Dr. Nancy Langston began her term as president. In February, we attended a retreat for the chief elected and chief executive officers. We explored policy governance, our goals and vision for the NLN, our working styles, and our motivation for taking on the leadership of an organization that was very fragile. We made commitments to each other about the way we would work together and the way we would treat each other. She is a treasure. And we got to work. A volunteer recruitment drive uncovered 250 members who wanted to give their time to the NLN. We analyzed applications, developed a database, and used this information to build committees more systematically. It was thrilling to see this first indication that there were loyal NLN members who wanted to help the organization thrive again. In the early part of 1999, it became apparent that the NLN was not going to meet its budgeted revenue. Through decisive cost-cutting we saved close to a million dollars that year. And successfully negotiating out of a contract resulted in savings of $8.4 million over the next four years. The first NLN strategic plan was approved by the board in June, allowing us to take a more systematic approach to the budgeting process. Staff could develop business plans to operationalize the strategic plan and budget and help us be more accurate in future budget projections. …