Modern Governance Summit 2023: Key learnings for thriving public sector organizations
Welcome to our look at the Diligent Modern Governance Summit 2023 (now called Diligent Elevate). We were thrilled to gather public education and state and local government leaders for a highly anticipated agenda with sessions tailored to the unique needs of the public sector.
As the premier gathering for industry leaders, innovators, and governance experts, the summit aimed to equip local governance leaders and board support staff with insights and expertise on using our solutions effectively to thrive in an ever-evolving landscape.
At the heart of the summit lies a strong commitment to empowering public sector organizations with the knowledge and strategies essential for navigating today's governance challenges. Last year’s agenda offered attendees a comprehensive and enriching experience, focused on practical product training alongside peer insights into how governance platforms maximize efficiency, drive sustainable growth and meet mission goals.
Whether you missed the summit or want to revisit sessions you loved, this is your opportunity to brush up on tips to elevate your board management practices and learn about Diligent Community, part of the Diligent One platform, the next generation of our growing portfolio of audit, risk and compliance solutions.
So, fasten your seatbelts as we embark on a quick journey through the sessions that took place at Diligent Modern Governance Summit 2023. Let's dive in!
Modern Governance Summit 2023 Education and Government Sessions and Talks
Agendas in BoardDocs: How to create standout agenda content
Wednesday, September 13, 11:00 am ‐ 11:45 am
Dennis Rohlfing, Senior Implementation Specialist, Diligent
In this hands-on training session, attendees learned the art of crafting standout agenda content using BoardDocs, unlocking the power to engage stakeholders and drive productive board meetings efficiently. They also discovered effective techniques for structuring agendas and maximizing the platform’s features to create compelling and impactful meeting materials.
BoardDocs Workflow: Using workflow to build agendas collaboratively
Wednesday, September 13, 1:00 pm ‐ 1:45 pm
Sylvia Raye, Senior Implementation Specialist, Diligent
This session dove into the collaborative power of BoardDocs Workflow. Attendees learned how to streamline the agenda-building process by involving multiple stakeholders, enabling seamless collaboration and feedback. Raye also shared tips to enhance efficiency and transparency as you harness the full potential of BoardDocs Workflow to create well-structured and synchronized agendas for your board meetings.
Community master class: Taking your usage to the next level
Wednesday, September 13, 1:00 pm ‐ 3:00 pm
- Francyne Coates, Implementation Manager, Diligent
- Janie Alexander, Implementation Specialist, Diligent
Through detailed feature demonstrations, attendees learned how to maximize their use of Diligent Community with the assistance of frequent product enhancements, increasing your efficiencies and collaboration with staff, members, and the public throughout your meeting process, including public requests to speak, item approval workflows, minutes creation and voting and more.
BoardDocs live meetings & minutes: Managing your live meetings with ease
Wednesday, September 13, 2:00 pm ‐ 2:45 pm
Diana Roadcap, Senior Training Specialist, Diligent
Attendees learned how to efficiently manage live meetings and minutes using BoardDocs in this popular Diligent Modern Governance Summit 2023 session. Roadcap revealed time-saving techniques and practical tips for seamless coordination and record-keeping during your meetings. Enhance your skills and boost productivity with BoardDocs’ user-friendly tools.
From BoardDocs to Community: Migrating made easy
Wednesday, September 13, 3:00 pm ‐ 3:45 pm
Merritt Brooks, Senior Training Specialist, Diligent
Administrators learned how to unlock the full potential of Diligent Community, our cutting-edge board management software and the future of BoardDocs. Dive deep into the seamless communication and collaboration features that empower you to interact effectively with your community like never before. We’ll also be taking questions on how to upgrade to Community.
What’s new with Diligent: For mission-driven organizations
Thursday, September 14, 10:30 am ‐ 11:20 am
- David Adkins, VP Customer Success, Diligent
- Nonie Dalton, VP Product Management, Diligent
Nonie Dalton, the VP of Product for Diligent’s Mission Driven Organizations group, reviewed what’s new and what’s next for Diligent’s governance solutions for elected, public sector and volunteer boards in community organizations.
Automating audits: More efficiency, better risk-based planning
Thursday, September 14, 10:30 am ‐ 11:20 am
- Jewell Freeman, Chief Audit Executive, Louisiana Department Corrections – Corrections Services
- Nicole George, JRI Coordinator, Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections – Corrections Services
- Moderator: Katja Freeman, Principal Public Sector Specialist, Diligent
This session equipped participants with the knowledge and skills to drive risk-based planning and enhance audit efficiency through automation effectively. Attendees gained key techniques for leveraging automation tools to streamline audit processes, identify potential risks, and improve efficiency. Through practical examples and case studies, participants left with a better understanding of how automation can be applied to various stages of the audit cycle, resulting in more effective risk management and resource optimization.
Public meeting management: The life-changing magic of workflows and approvals
Thursday, September 14, 11:30 am ‐ 12:20 pm
- Gervonder Brown, Executive Assistant to Superintendent, Fairfield County School District
- Kristy Deischer-Eddy, Executive Assistant, Honey Brook Township
- Moderator: Dawn Adams, Senior Implementation Specialist, Diligent
When meeting and agenda preparation keeps you up until the wee hours and adds complexity and stress for all involved, digitizing the process can feel revolutionary. Recapturing the time previously spent on manually creating and compiling printed copies, reordering content with each change to the agenda, and distributing copies for board members and leadership can add real value by allowing you to focus on higher-value activities. Attendees heard real-world examples from executive assistants on their board management system’s impact on the process. They also explored best practices for customizing workflows and approval processes and capturing minutes to help keep the focus on effective meetings that benefit the community.
Maximizing efficiency & effectiveness: Leveraging pre- and post-audit work
Thursday, September 14, 11:30 am ‐ 12:20 pm
- Curtis Verne Josey, Associate Director, Analytics & Data Strategy, Cornell University
- Moderator: Katja Freeman, Principal Public Sector Specialist
Today’s boards and executives demand more assurance without increasing costs or audit time. This session offers valuable insights into optimizing audits through strategic pre- and post-audit work. The panel explored strategies and techniques to enhance the efficiency and focus of your audits, ultimately delivering more effective results. This session dove into the significance of data collection, conducting preliminary risk assessments and leveraging technology for effective follow-up and tracking of results and action plans.
Public policy: Taking policy development to the next level
Thursday, September 14, 11:30 am ‐ 12:20 pm
- Heather Masshardt, Director of Policy Services, PSBA
- Scott Peters, Board Chair, Monadnock Regional School District
- Moderator: Sarah Gutierrez, Policy Implementation Manager, Diligent
Policy development is an essential responsibility of school boards and educational governing bodies, and effective policy management helps ensure the smooth functioning of the organization and support from the community. Making policy available, accessible and compliant is easier when using technology designed for that purpose. A state policy provider and an award-winning school district discussed best practices for digitizing and indexing policies, maintaining a master policy inventory, differentiating responsibilities between policy development and policy implementation, defining policy language, and creating repeatable and sustainable processes to support the organization long-term.
Diligent Community: The next generation of digital governance management
Thursday, September 14, 12:30 pm ‐ 12:40 pm
- Zoe Cunningham, Product Marketing Manager, Diligent
- Bill Pecor, Product Market Manager, Diligent
BoardDocs revolutionized board and council meeting management by introducing paperless meetings for government and educational organizations. Diligent has built on this powerful legacy by introducing the next generation in digital governance management. This session revealed how Diligent Community provides cutting-edge enhancements and new features to help your organization be more efficient, effective and secure.
Onboarding directors: A fresh approach
Thursday, September 14, 1:50 pm ‐ 2:45 pm
- Dr. Anna Everett, PhD, VP of the Board, Santa Barbara City College
- Elizabeth Thompson, Executive Assistant to the President & Corporate Secretary, Presbyterian SeniorCare Network
- Moderator: Megan Allen, CEO, BoardStrong
In response to the pandemic, boards and governing bodies were forced to rapidly reimagine how to conduct governance and oversight to continue essential operations. Board members and executive support staff shared their perspectives on how digital access to the historical board and policy documents allowed new board members to be onboarded seamlessly amidst a dynamically changing landscape. Additionally, they explored how these virtual onboarding practices have persisted and can influence board member onboarding protocols for the long term.
From accessibility to inclusivity: Tools for including the whole community
Thursday, September 14, 1:50 pm ‐ 2:45 pm
- Heather Masshardt, Director of Policy Services, Pennsylvania School Boards Association
- Moderator: Diana Roadcap, Senior Training Specialist, Diligent
For education and governmental organizations, ensuring the accessibility of public information is essential. Questions of accessibility have long been focused on technology requirements to support individuals with disabilities in interacting with information and resources. Yet inclusivity goes beyond merely meeting technology standards and demands equitable opportunities for participation across the entire community. Attendees heard how an inclusive approach also provides access and participation opportunities for those who may be prevented from in-person participation by transportation, work schedules, childcare or other factors.
Unleashing the power of AI: Harnessing language models for local government, schools & nonprofits
Friday, September 15, 10:00 am ‐ 10:50 am
- MarKeith Allen, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Mission Driven Organizations, Diligent
- Nonie Dalton, Vice President, Product Management, Diligent
- Ari Ioannides, Board Member, Park City Institute
Artificial intelligence (AI) has untapped potential, especially if designed specifically for K-12, local government and nonprofit organizations. With the rapid advancements in language models like ChatGPT, leaders and administrators now have access to powerful tools that streamline their daily tasks and improve overall efficiency. This session explored how administrators can leverage these technologies to transform their day-to-day operations. We discussed how to overcome common concerns and hesitations about adopting AI tools, and we provided practical examples of how language models can assist in analyzing financials and drafting communications, sample policies, press releases, resolutions and board agendas.
Public sector auditing: Digitization for state and local agencies
Friday, September 15, 10:00 am ‐ 10:50 am
- Jason Reeves, Indiana Department of Transportation
- Emil Tzanov, Chief Audit Executive, MARTA
- Moderator: Katja Freeman, Principal Public Sector Specialist, Diligent
This panel of state agency representatives discussed their experiences transitioning to a digitized platform and using automation and analytics to create efficiencies throughout the entire audit process, leading to more impactful audits for even the most complex organizations. Attendees also learned how mass transportation systems have broadened their scope to support community-related initiatives and explore best practices for communicating audit results to the board and leadership.
Positive public participation: Engaging the community through live streaming & hybrid meetings
Friday, September 15, 11:00 am ‐ 11:50 am
- Gary Buchanan, Community Manager, BoxCast
- Dr. R.J. Gravel, Associate Superintendent, Glenbrook High School District 225
- Moderator: Janie Alexander, Implementation Specialist, Diligent
School districts can meet public meeting requirements by providing access to meeting agendas and materials online. However, encouraging positive public engagement requires a focus on transparency and inclusivity by providing access to all aspects of district governance. Glenbrook High School District 225, a nationally ranked school district near Chicago, shared how they have introduced “a single pane of glass” that allows their community to access meeting agendas, view an embedded livestream of the meeting, and even engage in dialogue with their elected representatives and the district’s administration.
Transparency & compliance: Managing your public site
Friday, September 15, 11:00 am ‐ 11:50 am
- Shameika Henry, Administrator, Saint Louis Public Schools
- Kevin Moss, Washington County, OR
- Moderator: Francyne Coates, Implementation Manager, Diligent
A well-informed public provides the necessary support for school district initiatives and strategic goals. Making board information and policies easily accessible is essential to ensuring the balance between transparency and compliance. In this session, a board administrator and a district superintendent shared how their board management system has helped to improve communication with the public, making access to information more efficient and reducing the burden of public records requests on district staff.
Register for even more modern governance insights
Modern Governance Summit returns September 2024 as Diligent Elevate, an event built for leaders who want to be the first to hear trends, predictions and insights shaping the governance industry — and how to use the Diligent One modern governance platform. We’d love to see you there! Learn more and register here.
