Governance Resources
In this section you can link through to a variety of resources on governance. If you would like to add a link please email nfpn@nfpn.com.au
Trends, Statistics & Perspective
Chapter Psychology 101. By Nick Senzee, Scott Rosenke, and Paul McMurray. Relations between a parent association and its chapters can strain easily, but these problems typically aren't rooted in policy—they're a result of stubborn leaders on both sides of the relationship. Making an effort to understand how your mindsets relate and differ—and talking openly about it—can make all the difference… read more
Governance Trends in Not-For-Profit Organisations - By Steven Bowman - The most current data on Not for Profit organisations in Australia shows that there are over 111,000 incorporated associations and over 600,000 unincorporated associations, of which 23,000 have full time staff…read more
Grant Thornton inaugural Not-For-Profit Sector Survey - From Grant Thornton Website - The national survey provides a unique snapshot of how a cross-section of New Zealand charitable and not for profit organisations view the key challenges they face in the future as well as how they deal with current issues…read more
Nonprofit Market Analysis - By Bill Nissim on the Bloodhound Network Website - I recently attended a lecture series at Oxford University and one presenter, Dr. Richard Schoenberg, illustrated why some organizations succeed while others fail to harness the essence of customer satisfaction. His concept could be applied to any ongoing concern and quickly depicts gaps between products/services offered and actual consumer behaviour. Several months later I came across another body of research that dealt with similar issues but the model and approach differed. Dr. Clayton Christensen (Harvard Business School) proposed his theory which unveiled the difference between innovative versus a sustaining business model and the process of emergent versus deliberate strategies. A myriad of other relevant concepts from accomplished authors were also applied to this article to complete the discussion…read more
Reforming Not-For-Profit Regulation Final Report - This is the final research report for the Reforming not-for-profit regulation project (released 19 February 2004). The report details the findings of the national survey of not-for-profit companies and outlines reform recommendations…read more
Reflections from the Not-for-Profit Front Lines - By George Weber CAE CSAE Chair in the Canadian Association - The following is a condensed version of an address by CSAE Chair, George Weber, delivered to the CSAE Quebec Chapter at their Annual General Meeting in June, examining the trends and challenges facing associations today. Whether we represent trade, business or professional organizations or are committed to charitable causes or special interests, not-for-profit organizations exist to promote shared interests, solve common problems, and exchange, build upon and advance common knowledge. Most have as one of their objectives the need to serve the public interest…read more
What's Happening in Association Governance These Days? – By Gincomm Group - Here are five trends that are emerging in association governance. Maybe some of them are right for your organisation…read more
Report of findings of a survey of public trust and confidence in charities - Charity Commission (UK)
Articles – General
Bill to reform the Queensland Associations Incorporation Act
Certificate II in Indigenous Leadership - Australian Indigenous Leadership Centre Ltd.
Achieving Balance in Nonprofit Governance - By Manda Salls - In this e-mail interview with HBS Working Knowledge, Marion R. Fremont-Smith, Senior Research Fellow, Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organisations, Harvard University, talks about the role of government in the life of a nonprofit, shares proposals for change from recent hearings by the Senate Finance Committee, and gives advice on how members of nonprofit boards can improve the efficacy of their participation…read more
Charitable governance - by Alan Hough in Association Management (August 04)
Combating the Abuse of Nonprofit Organisations - By the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering - The misuse of non-profit organisations for the financing of terrorism is coming to be recognised as a crucial weak point in the global struggle to stop such funding at its source…read more.
Dynamic Governance, Dynamite Components - by Kris Prendergast in Associations Now
Facing up to the Paradoxes of Governance - Boardworks International - It is often asserted that the role of a director of a commercial, publicly owned or not-for-profit organisation has changed and become much more challenging during the last few years. There is no doubt that directors are spending more time in the role and a higher standard of performance is being expected of them than previously. This does not mean, however, that the role is significantly different than in the past…read more
Founders and Other Gods - By Deborah Linnell in Nonprofit Quarterly - Founders--you can't live with 'em, you can't live without 'em; or sometimes you die in the process of trying. What makes founders of nonprofit organizations some of our greatest leaders? And what also makes them the demon in many nonprofits' most turbulent and dramatic chapters? Why are founders so often our greatest inspiration, while so susceptible to an Icarus complex--sometimes even bringing down an entire organization with them?… read more
Lifting the veil on corporate social responsibilty - by Anne-Maree Huxley in Association Management (October 05)
Looking Behind Bad Decisions - In a recent HBS Working Paper, HBS professor Max Bazerman and colleagues explore how biases and human psychology impede policy-making efforts that could vastly improve people's lives…read more
Navigating Shifts in Revenue and Accountability: Where We Stand - By Clara Miller - It’s beautifully wrapped and from your favorite store. It’s what you always wanted! But wait. It’s too big, or too small. It’s mohair, not linen. Or you really needed something else. How do you tell Aunt Bee? Or do you?...read more
New Models of Associating – By Diane James, CAE; John Jordan, CAE; and Paul Pomerantz, CAE in the Journal of Association Leadership - Most association leaders would say their organizations are pretty good at building community. Association leaders also embrace the concept of learning from corporations. Surprisingly, though, many of the businesses we seek to emulate actually are emulating us — and reaping the harvest that so many organizations have found elusive. Have some organizations taken our concepts and applied them with greater success — and more importantly, how?...read more
Seven Keys to Success in Governance Review and Change - by Lyn McDonell, Canada's Association Management magazine....read more
The Co-operative Governance Manual - by the Co-operative Federation of Victoria - sets out to provide a framework for reviewing and defining what co-operative members and directors should know, do and be....read more
The Co-operative Start Up Manual - by the Co-operative Federation of Victoria - the essential guide for starting co-operatives in Victoria
The Spiral of Sustainable Excellence – By Paul C. Light, The Nonprofit Quarterly - Imagine a nonprofit’s life as a journey up and down a development spiral. All organizations would start with a simple idea for some new program or service and then move up the spiral toward greater and greater impact, progressing through five landings, or stops, along the climb…read more
Turnaround Artist – By Dave Kovaleski in Association Meetings magazine - When Nancy Berg became executive director and general manager of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers in 2000, she inherited an association at a crossroads. The economy was tanking, manufacturing jobs were going overseas, and the association was losing about $6 million per year…read more
XY factors 'set to shake up boards' (Leon Gettler) Catherine Walter, the former dissident National Australia Bank director who was the catalyst for dismantling the board last year, has warned that Generation X and Y will shake things up when they hit boardrooms… read more.
“What are the Powers of Members vs Nonprofit Boards?" (Steve Bowman) One of the most common topics that we are asked (particularly just before or just after AGM season) is regarding exactly what powers members have. We have talked with many CEOs, as recently as last week, where they have been involved in AGMs (not necessarily theirs) that have dissolved into farce and acrimony, leaving the organization in confusion and Board and staff unsure what to do next...read more.
Articles – Board Management & Development
Creating Financial Sustainability Through Appropriate Investment
Part 1: Issues faced by non-profits - By Peter Beaney CFP, Dip FP, PG Cert Mgmt. - Not-for-profit organisations face a complex and unique set of barriers to managing investment portfolios. Many of the issues faced by not-for-profits relate to their board members coming from a range of backgrounds, with some lacking the confidence or knowledge to commit to long-term strategies to build wealth and ensure the future stability or expansion of the organisation.
These issues can be broadly categorised into five areas: read more
Focus versus Fashion; how to get your board off the latest fad – By Julie Garland McLellan- Have you recently read any articles about what your board should be focused on? Was it bird-flu, Internet portals, Terrorism or some other fad?.... read more
An Introduction to Succession Planning –Succession planning is the process of planning appropriate action in the case that a person acknowledged as a key person or who currently occupies a key position in the organisation is no longer available to the organisation. Events that cause or contribute to such a person no longer being available may be sudden and unexpected, or scheduled and expected – and wise succession planning will cater for both situations.... read more
Board oversight of financial risks, what you can do - by Julie Garland McLellan in Association Management (August 05)
Board Recruitment & Orientation. A Step-by-Step Common Sense Guide - By Hildy Gottlieb - If your Board was abducted by aliens, would the organization notice they were gone? Would anyone pay to get them back?...read more
Board retreats - the wave of the future - by Carol Weisman in Association Management (August 04)
Building a Strategic Thinking Board - By Terrie Temkin - Organisations have invested significant resources in creating strategic plans that, too often, become merely dust catchers. Part of the problem is a failure to use strategic plans as the guides they are meant to be – referencing them at every meeting, using them to make program, human resource and financial decisions…read more
Building better boards - by Julie Garland McLellan in Association Management (June 05)
Bullies on the Board - By Carol Humphries - Leslie (name changed to protect his identity) was the kind of director any Board would be delighted to have as a member. He came prepared for every meeting. He took up jobs that fit with his specific skills and experience as an accountant. He worked well with staff and other directors. Other directors, that is, except for one - the Board Chairman…read more
Ideas for motivating board members - by Carol Weisman in Association Management (December 04)
In the boardroom culture counts - by Nancy Axelrod in Association Management (December 04)
Motivating Your Board - By Jane Logan - How does a small media literacy organization do an outstanding job attracting senior level Board members and motivate them on its behalf? Ottawa-based AXI associate Jane Logan interviewed the Media Awareness Network (MNet)’s outgoing Executive Director Jan D’Arcy to determine which magical best practices have fuelled MNet’s world-class accomplishments…read more
No-snooze board meetings - by Carol Weisman in Association Management (June 05)
Questions boards should ask - by Fran Morris in Association Management (June 05)
Sustainability Framework for Developing a Conscious Board - by Steven Bowman, LifeMastery (Aust) - One of the major issues facing Boards today is the tendency towards prescription and conformance with governance systems, rather than conscious governance that adds value to the organisation...read more
The Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards in a Crisis – By the Alliance of Nonprofit Governance - The tragedy of September 11th has caused us to think about the responsibilities of a nonprofit board in such a crisis. Since then, New York nonprofit agencies have been, in the words of one Alliance for Nonprofit Governance (ANG) member, "Trying to recover ourselves while we help others recover." The following is derived in part from a discussion among ANG members that focused on NYC's tragedy. Nonetheless, we believe it is relevant for nonprofits in any catastrophic situation. This write up is intended to stimulate thought and action on the part of nonprofit boards…read more
Those Inescapable Directors' Duties - By Boardworks International - There is no escaping the fact that all directors are required to meet certain legal duties and responsibilities. While organisations have access to a range of categories for incorporation (these include companies limited by shares e.g. limited liability or proprietary companies, incorporated associations, a company limited by guarantee or a trust) there is essentially no difference in the duties and responsibilities of directors in each category. This is so on both sides of the Tasman…read more
Unnecessary Losses - In Associations Now - Keeping your board at arm's length is no way to lead your association. CompassPoint executive director Jan Masaoka explains why… read more
Constitution Checklist (Jean Roberts) A Constitution is not an easy document to read or understand for the average Board member. However, it is a legal document giving direction to the Board and CEO (or senior paid staff position): therefore a concerted effort should be made for whole-Board discussion on the legal status, role, structure and content of the Constitution...read more.
Articles – The Nonprofit CEO
A Memo From the CEO. By Cindy C. Crouse, CAE (with commentaries by Paul Borawski, CAE, and Barbara Byrd Keenan, CAE). JAL sought out a current association CEO to take on a particularly difficult assignment: From the perspective of a CEO working in a fictional association, write a memo challenging your incoming chair and the board to confront the truth of what is happening inside the association. Author Cindy Crouse accepted the challenge
Choosing A New Nonprofit Ceo – A Longitudinal Study - According to the prescriptive literature on governance, one of the key responsibilities of a nonprofit board of directors is the selection of a chief executive officer (CEO) to provide administrative leadership to the organization (Axelrod, 1994; Block, 1998; Houle, 1989; Howe, 1995). In fact, this responsibility may fairly be characterized as preeminent: “No more important or sensitive task confronts you as a trustee than selecting a new chief executive….Fortunately, the task of selecting a new chief executive arises only occasionally. When it does, it immediately becomes the dominant item on the board’s agenda” (Howe, 1995, p. 35)…read more
Eight Basic Expectations a Chief Executive has of his or her Board - We increasingly hear about chief executives being replaced prematurely because they have failed to meet their board’s expectations. Unfortunately, there are probably at least as many, if not more, chief executives who are let down by their boards…read more
Evaluating Your Executive Director - A Guide for Boards of Nonprofit Community Development Organisations – By the Enterprise Foundation - The performance of a nonprofit’s executive director is critical to the organisation fulfilling its mission. Because the person in this role directly influences the organisation’s success and financial health, it is incumbent on the board of directors to set standards and objectively and fairly evaluate the performance of its executive director against these standards…read more
Finessing Tough Situations: A Guide for New CEOs - By Bill J. Harrison in Executive Online - With so many executive coaches around, Executive Update wondered what three of America's leading management coaches (as ranked by Forbes magazine) would recommend to a new CEO entering an association under three difficult scenarios: A: You are replacing a beloved organizational leader who has served in that role for 20 years...read more
Regulatory reform, INCE CEO workshop - by David Pointon in Association Management (October 05)
The Conscious CEO - The New Face of Leadership - By Steven Bowman - What makes a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) stand out as a true leader, one who has charisma, who is decisive yet takes into account all points of view, who is able to ask questions or find solutions that have eluded everyone else, who forges incredibly strong and long lasting strategic visions and systems?...read more
How can the nonprofit Board Chair and the CEO work together productively?(Steve Bowman) The relationship between the nonprofit Board Chair and the CEO is arguably the most important relationship in the organization. There have been many instances, both public and anecdotal, where this relationship has broken down, usually with either the CEO resigning (literally or “euphemistically”), or the Chair resigning or not being re-elected…read more.
Articles – Leadership
Change – What’s Needed? Answer: More Leadership, Less Management - By Robert Harris in Canadian Association - John Kotter, one of the renowned change experts of our time, talked about the need for more leadership and less management in his excellent book, Leading Change. What did Kotter mean by this? Management has always been regarded as a good thing; in fact, many high profile universities stake their reputations on their business and management studies program … read more
Creating Caring Leadership for the 21st Century - By Larry Spears - It all starts with effective, caring leadership that grows out of a desire to serve others. Today, many of us are choosing to call this approach to leadership "servant-leadership". Consider the following list of leadership authorities: Warren Bennis, Ken Blanchard, Peter Block, Stephen Covey, Peter Drucker, Joe Jaworski, Jim Kouzes, M Scott Peck, Peter Senge, Peter Vaill, Margaret Wheatley and Danah Zohar. What do these authors have in common? All of them have been explicitly or implicitly influenced by the writings of Robert K Greenleaf. These and many other leadership authors are increasingly calling attention to the growing influence of Greenleaf's concept of servant-leadership…read more
Future-Oriented Leadership: A Rare and Precious Capability – By Jim Carroll in Canada’s Association magazine – There are three types of leaders in the world: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who ask, "What happened?" Heaven help you if you are in the last category. We live in an era of such rapid change that I've become convinced that forward oriented leadership is the most important career attribute executives must possess…read more
Major Leadership Shortage in Nonprofit World Expected in Next Two Decades - By Holly Hall, The Chronicle of Philanthropy - Nearly three-fourths of all nonprofit executives will reach retirement age over the next two decades, and charities will be hard pressed to replace them, according to a new survey… read more
Nonprofit Networking: The New Way to Grow - By Martha Lagace, Senior Editor, HBS Working Knowledge - Whether their mission is to protect wildlife, help disabled people, or offer financial services in developing countries, nonprofit organizations often believe they need to grow big before they can achieve significant social impact. HBS professor Jane Wei-Skillern has been exploring something different: Her research suggests that a more powerful lever to increase a nonprofit's social impact might be to focus on building network relationships like-minded groups—even competitors…read more
Preventing Predictable Surprises - By Michael D. Watkins in Executive Update - The signs of an impending crisis often lie all around us, yet we still don't see them. Fortunately, leaders can develop ways to spot danger before it's too late - if they make the effort…read more
Articles – Strategic Planning
5 Ways to Overcome Cynicism About Strategic Planning – By Jane Logan in Association Expertise - The best way to overcome cynicism about strategic planning is to avoid manipulating the participants to achieve a predetermined outcome. However, assuming your intentions are good, here are five ways to stop cynicism from creeping in and strangling the process…read more
A Plan is a Map to Advancing Your Mission – By Robert DeMartinis on the About.com website – Your nonprofit organization has been providing service for a number of years and yet, the growth you expected to achieve has not been realized. Or, you just started a nonprofit organization, decided to incorporate, have a small board of directors and a mission, but now what? Each organization realizes it needs to become something more or different than it is today. What do you do? Develop a plan, write it down and be accountable for sticking to it…read more
Agile Association - What can we learn from associations that have successfully responded to significant change? In an attempt to gather relevant information and amass a sufficient body of knowledge and understanding from associations that have experienced massive environmental change, our firm undertook a series of in-depth interviews with top staff leaders of 12 large national and international trade associations as decision support for the strategic planning efforts of one of our client organisations…read more
Associations and Competitive Advantage - By Jay Younger - Any meaningful conversation about association strategy should include the concept of competitive advantage. Certainly, most educators and business thinkers agree that building sustainable competitive advantage is a critical component, perhaps the critical component, of creating successful businesses…read more
Living Strategy: Guiding Your Association through the Rugged Landscape - By Paul Borawski and Arian Ward - As in any complex system, the association ecosystem must adapt to changing conditions by developing traits that facilitate survival. According to the authors, approaching strategy creation as a fixed, mechanistic series of events instead of as an ongoing, dynamic process severely hinders our ability to adapt to changing circumstances. What associations need, they say, is a strategy that is as "alive" as the organization itself is…read more
Strategic planning demystified - by Ralph Penning in Association Management (February 05)
Strategic Restructuring – Partnership Options for Nonprofits – On this website you will find a wealth of resources related to strategic restructuring of nonprofits from mergers to joint programming…read more
The Panel, Strategic management - in Association Management (February 05)
The Power of Conscious Strategy: Strategy Setting for Boards - by Steven Bowman, LifeMastery (Aust) - One of the key governance roles of a Board is to ensure that strategy is approved and regularly monitored, and that the Board consciously oversees the implementation of that strategy...read more
Eight Ingredients for Making Better Strategic Decisions (Jeff Mowatt) As an association executive or manager, what you ultimately rely on most when deciding your association’s future, is your intuition. The challenge, with so many stakeholders relying on you to make the ‘right’ decision, is ensuring that your instincts are reliable… read more.
Managing Urgencies (Seth Godin) Do you have a plan? A long or medium term plan for your brand or your blog or your career or your project? You can have grand visions for remodeling your house or getting in shape, but if there's a fire in the kitchen, you drop everything and put it out. What choice do you have? The problem, of course, is that most organizations are on fire, most of the time... read more.