The ACC has experienced significant growth and change over the last decade. Much of this growth has come in response to changes in the health care environment, as well as changes to member demographics. Currently the College’s membership stands at 49,000 domestic and international members, with more than 80 state and international chapters, in addition to more than 420 staff and an over $120 million dollar annual operating budget. Further, the trend toward hospital integration for a majority of ACC’s members has required us to change and tailor our products and services to meet the different needs of members in these institutional environments.  

Since the development of ACC’s comprehensive five-year Strategic Plan, designed to ensure that the College is doing the right things to fulfill its mission in this changing environment, ACC’s Board of Trustees (BOT) has made it a priority to review its governance and decision-making structures and processes. As a result of this review, the BOT recently approved several key principles of 21st century, optimal governance. The Board will use these principles to guide the development of performance metrics and a governance implementation plan to be released by early 2016.

At a high level, the principles articulate College governance characterized by centralized authority sitting with a Board that is rigorously strategic and policy focused. Tactical, operational and management decision making is decentralized and made at the staff and committee levels. Importantly, the principles articulate that optimal College governance takes into account the needs and challenges of all member constituencies and that governance is always in service to ACC’s mission of transforming cardiovascular care and improving heart health.

The BOT-approved principles also support a governing body that is sized and structured to provide optimum governance function based on the latest research and practice; that is reflective of the diversity in the larger membership, including expertise, experience, gender, race, geographic location, age and type of career or  practice; and that has clearly defined roles, functions, authority and accountability.

In the coming months, BOT members will engage with stakeholders across the College as they work to move from principles to implementation. The ultimate goal: governance that enables the ACC to continue its success in transforming not only cardiovascular care, but also the people who deliver it.

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