Corporator Nomination and Orientation Committee Update

Eight towns are represented among the new corporators

 Emerson’s corporator nomination and orientation functions are working well, based on the recent cycle of identifying, voting in and welcoming new corporators.  Almost all of the 19 new corporators were able to attend the Emerson Health System Annual Meeting in January.  Many have already attended an corporator orientation session.

They represent a number of communities, notes Bill Ryan, chairman of the Nomination Committee.  “Our new corporators come from eight towns—Acton, Bedford, Bolton, Concord, Groton, Littleton, Maynard and Stow,” he says.  “Moreover, they have a mix of backgrounds.  There are some small business people, folks with financial backgrounds, some retired individuals, along with some younger people.”

They tend to have one thing in common, he adds.  “We ask people who tend to be busy—in their professional lives and with their community.  Those are the people who can take an active interest in Emerson.  I feel good about the people we’re attracting, as well as the fact that, when asked, they say yes to becoming a corporator.“  This time, there were ten more people nominated than there were additional slots.

Members of the Emerson community nominate individuals to become a corporator.  “Mostly, other corporators do the nominating,” says Mr. Ryan, “but I was nominated by a physician.  It’s a matter of talking with folks in a particular community and asking ‘who do you know?’”


Orientation sessions are good preparation

New corporators received an official welcome at the annual meeting.  “We had a special welcome table for them and nametags that recognized them as new corporators,” says Karen Donoghue, chair of the Orientation Committee. 
 The mentor program, in its second year, is working well.  In most cases, the mentor is the individual who nominated the new corporator.  “We arranged to have new corporators sit with their mentors at the annual meeting,” says Ms. Donoghue.  “During their first year, the mentor is responsible for staying in touch by reminding them of upcoming corporator breakfasts and other events.”

After the annual meeting, five orientation sessions were scheduled.  Each session includes a tour of Emerson and presentations made by members of the development office.  During the spring and summer, new corporators are invited to Emerson for coffee and conversation with Christine Schuster, president and CEO.  “The goal is to arm them with knowledge—of Emerson and health care in general—and help them to feel familiar with the hospital,” says Ms. Donoghue.

Jill Block, a new corporator from Concord, attended orientation and enjoyed the tour of Emerson.  “For me, it was a trip down memory lane as I remembered trips to the Emergency Department with my children and husband, as well as surgeries,” says Ms. Block, a public health consultant who serves as coordinator for Healthy Concord, an initiative to assess the town’s overall well-being.  “I ran into friends who were waiting for services and staff members who I know personally.  The tour confirmed the role that Emerson has played in my life.”

That represents a good start as a corporator.  Now that Ms. Block is representing Emerson as a corporator, she is likely to hear good things from others.  “People always come up to me and say something nice about the hospital,” says Mr. Ryan.
 

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