Forward-Looking for LMA: The Rewarding Work of Stewardship
Brenda Plowman
2022 LMA International Board of Directors President
August 2022
I’ve been thinking a lot about stewardship lately. Perhaps it is sitting in the lead volunteer position for the International Legal Marketing Association as President 2022. I’m eight months into a 12-month term and we’ve accomplished a lot already this year. I took on this role because I’m deeply passionate about the work that we do in the (legal) marketing and business development profession. I’m driven to see my team and colleagues achieve the objectives they are working towards with their firms, and ensure they shine/ get recognized for their work and continue to have great new opportunities in their careers.
A key responsibility as LMA president is to work with our LMA CEO, Danielle Gorash Holland, to ensure that our Board of Directors functions well and works to advance our organization of nearly 4,000 global members, and the legal marketing profession. As a board, we are focused on our governance and the future state of our profession. We work with a dedicated professional staff team, support our regions, drive our programs and initiatives, ensure the member experience continues to evolve, and set the path for the future. It really does take a village.
Beyond the Board, a big focus is on the eight LMA Regions and the more than 40 Local Groups that make up our membership. We work with a talented group of Regional Presidents, their Boards and Local Committees. We mobilize a tremendous number of volunteers to serve our membership. We have Committees, Special Interest Groups and Task Forces that are also advancing our work. We get things done as an association through the involvement and leadership from all of these volunteers and our engaged membership to move LMA forward.
Our collective role as volunteers is to carry on the work of those who have come before us and ensure we leave the organization in a better place for future generations. Our time in our respective roles is short and extremely important. We are stewards with an obligation to something so much bigger than us as individuals. This concept of looking forward and building our future belongs to each of us. I found this information from the Harvard Business Review article, Top Boards Do These 4 Things Differently (Feb 2020), compelling.
‘American corporate advisors Rusty O’Kelley III and PJ Neal encouraged boards to look forward and not back. They said that as stewards, boards were not markers of their own enterprise’s homework. They explained that, “Reviewing financial statements, audit activities and compliance activities are the responsibility of the board, not the mission of the board.” They pointed out that, “The most important — and most impactful — activities are forward-looking ones: strategic planning, CEO and management succession planning, and improved oversight of enterprise risk and mergers and acquisitions transactions. These activities help the company create its future.” Though O’Kelley and Neal are referencing corporate boards, this also applies to a volunteer board.
As leaders, the long term focus of our work for the future of our organization is paramount. We have a responsibility to truly keep our members front and center in all we do and work for the good of the organization. This is hard work, and so very rewarding once we apply ourselves to the challenge. It requires us to continuously assess the value we provide to our membership and make that our why.
One of the most rewarding aspects of this role as president is working alongside the many volunteers to do this stewardship work. Thank you to everyone in our community that contributes daily. You really do make a difference!