--- title: The Second-Year Cliff Board Accountability Checklist | Edgility Search description: The most common failure in executive leadership is a board that stops leading after the hire. Use this checklist to assess where your governance stands. --- ![Edgility Search](https://edgilitysearch.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Edgility%20Search%20Logo_%20White.png?width=500&height=164&name=Edgility%20Search%20Logo_%20White.png) Edgility Search · Board Tools # The Second-Year Cliff *Board Accountability Checklist* The most common failure in executive leadership isn't a bad hire — it's a board that stops leading once the contract is signed. Use this checklist to assess where your governance stands. 0 of 18 completed **How to use this tool:** Check each item your board currently has in place. If you find yourself in the red across a full section, that's a governance gap — not a leadership gap. The research is clear: most second-year failures are not caused by the wrong hire. They're caused by inadequate board support. 0 / 18 ### – – 01 Goal Clarity & Shared Definition of Success· 5 items 0 / 5 ✓ The board and CEO co-created a written set of 90-day, 6-month, and 12-month success milestones before the executive's first day. ✓ Those milestones are grounded in the *organizational moment* (turnaround / stabilization / scale / transformation) — not recycled from the prior leader's goals. ✓ There is written alignment between the board chair and the CEO on what "good" looks like at the 12-month mark — shared and signed off before the search closes. ✓ Goals have been updated at least once in the past 12 months to reflect new organizational realities, not just carried forward from year one. ✓ The CEO has explicitly confirmed in writing that they feel the current goals are clear, fair, and achievable with adequate board support. 02 Evaluation Quality· 4 items 0 / 4 ✓ The CEO has received at least one structured, formal, documented performance review tied to agreed-upon competencies within their first 18 months. ✓ Evaluation criteria are competency-based, measurable, and observable. ✓ The evaluation process includes structured feedback from direct reports and key stakeholders, not only the board chair's perspective. ✓ The CEO was given the opportunity to evaluate the board in return, and that feedback was formally received and acted upon. 03 Board Engagement & Partnership· 5 items 0 / 5 ✓ The board chair and CEO have a standing 1:1 meeting (at least monthly) with a consistent agenda that includes both operational check-in and strategic alignment. ✓ The board has proactively opened doors for the new CEO/ED — made introductions, provided funder access, and activated its network on the executive's behalf. ✓ No individual board member is going around the CEO to access staff, programs, or operational information without the CEO's knowledge and consent. ✓ The board has explicitly and publicly signaled confidence in the CEO's leadership to staff, funders, and community stakeholders in year two. ✓ The board has discussed, and reached explicit consensus, on the distinction between board governance and staff management. Role boundaries are clear and respected. 04 Momentum & Early Warning Signs· 4 items 0 / 4 ✓ The board has a formal mechanism, beyond annual reviews, to check in on the CEO's satisfaction, workload, and sense of board support. ✓ If staff turnover has occurred in the past 12 months, the board has investigated root causes independently and separated those findings from assumptions about the CEO. ✓ The board has not confused the CEO's management of a difficult organizational transition with poor leadership performance. ✓ If there are concerns about the CEO's performance, there is a documented, structured improvement process in place — not informal hallway conversations among board members. ### Is your onboarding process setting leaders up to thrive? Edgility's Executive Onboarding & Evaluation service partners boards and new executives through structured goal-setting, coaching, and evaluation — so year two doesn't become a cliff. [ Learn About Our Keep Service ](https://edgilitysearch.com/executive-onboarding?hsLang=en) Reset checklist Read the full article: [The Second-Year Cliff: Why Good Hires Fail in Year Two](https://edgilitysearch.com/executive-search-insights?hsLang=en)  ·  [View all Tools](https://edgilitysearch.com/executive-search-insights/tag/tools?hsLang=en)