That stumbling, bumbling administrative vaudeville act known euphemistically as “The UNC BOG” a/k/a University of North Carolina Board of Governors – may indeed be “a stumbling, bumbling ………… act”; but it IS Fixable.
There ARE some fine individuals on the current BOG who CAN do some very good work on behalf of the people of North Carolina….
Jenna Robinson – a quite accomplished investigative commando for The JLF’s “LockerRoom – recently posted the latest “the Truth hurts” account of how dysfunctional the current BOG has become. – Link .… I urge you to read it if you have not.
One does not need to be Peter Drucker or a rainmaker for McKinsey or Booz Allen or any other whizbang management consultantcy “from more than 100 miles away and carrying a briefcase” to fix the UNC BOG. But no 20 lbs leather-bound “Management Plan” is worth a hill o’ beans unless ……
…. Ms Robinson’s article is too polite. She avoids the #1 “monkey wrench in the works” that is responsible for this most inglorious mess i.e. it’s current chairman – John Fennebresque.
Fennebresque employs the leadership style of a constipated “Il Duce” Benito Mussolini. He is arrogant, ruthless, vindictive, and “holds grudges”. But enough about his better qualities.
Is John Fennebresque as ineffective a “leader” as House Speaker “Tiny Tim” Moore? A fair question. They are equally ineffective in different ways. We will discuss “Tiny Tim” and his cabal of scheming elves at a later date.
Full Disclosure: I have never personally “met” John Fennebresque. I have had numerous conversations with BOG members as well as assorted Mecklenburg movers & shakers”. Stand on the corner of Tryon & Trade in Charlotte and you will hear plenty of John Fennebresque stories. Apparently everyone in Charlotte has one.
John Fennebresque may be a “nice guy”, a dutiful husband and a loving father. Maybe he sings in a church choir and delivers Meals On Wheels (I doubt that). He does have a great deal of “family money” to buy whatever he wants.
A lot of people who get appointed to prestigious positions have “that” going for them. He is not the first or last to employ that “skill”. It is a very Bi-partisan “talent”.
The current BOG has not become a laughingstock because of its partisan make-up. It has ALWAYS been an “overtly partisan body”…. less so now than in previous decades.
Why is John Fennebresque Chairman of the UNC BOG? Simple. He bought it.
I could “buy” myself a spot on the roster of The Carolina Hurricanes; but it would quickly become apparent that I can’t ice skate. A precursory due diligence of John Fennebresque would reveal he is NOT an Executive-level Manager.
Being “a silk-stockinged lawyer” is not the same as “being an accomplished executive manager” any more than being a Hollywood actor equates to being an authority on global economics.
John Fennebresque wanted the resume / obituary credit of Chairman of The UNC BOG to counter several “less than exemplary” items in his bruised and battered Curriculum Vitae. Items that clearly illustrated his lack of executive leadership acumen. ….. So he wrote sizable checks to several influential NC General Assembly members who are puppetmasters of the BOG. One recipient being Mecklenburg’s Bob Rucho…. a multi-term veteran of “how Jones Street works”. NOTE: Donations to a political campaign are absolutely “legal” assuming certain guidelines are followed. We are not implying those guidelines were not followed in this case. “Quid pro quo” is also understood.
You want to know how a John Fennebresque got to be Chair of the UNC BOG? Contact Senator Bob Rucho – (919) 733-5655 ….. [email protected] .
He’ll hem and haw and say “his fellow BOG members elected him. It’s not my fault. Blah blah yadda yadda…..” BULL!
Then ask Sen. Rucho if he and Sen. Phil Berger could “persuade” John Fennebresque to “decide to resign his BOG post to pursue other career options”. Trust me. Rucho and Berger can “do that” very very easily.
BUT to do that means (1) admitting his appointment was a colossal blunder, and (2) they would have to give back all that $$$. No politician of any party wants to do either #1 or #2.
Do a freakin’ Tony Tata and say “I need to work on my book”. Who cares what he says…. just persuade him to get the hell off of the BOG. Hellfire…. name him (Fennebresque) as Ambassador to Vermont. Just get him off of the UNC BOG.
IF that happens (odds are it WON’t) – we’ll go to Step Two in cleaning up this trainwreck. It’s not too late. There are some fine individuals on the current BOG who CAN do some very good work on behalf of the people of North Carolina….
Flush Fennebresque….. and let them prove it.
PS: Surely you know that the “prestigious” search firm that Fennebresque hired to replace Tom “Z. Smith” Ross is the same bunch that found Gene “Gasbag” Nichol for William & Mary. HOLY CRAP, Batman! How would you like THAT on your company’s list of accomplishments?
That same firm proudly boast of its “success” at promoting DIVERSITY within High Academia. Look for Tom Ross’ successor to be a Transsexual Albino Muslim Midget with a lazy eye and a lisp.
…. If we’re lucky.
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