What happened at your last board meeting?

Are you on track to achieve your short term and long term goals? What happened at the meeting is likely an indicator of your organization’s health and sustainability. Here are some typical scenarios:

  • The meeting consisted of a number of committee reports but members left with a sense of emptiness regarding the real progress towards the mission
  • Your staff leader is now gone- either by your choice or theirs- there is uncertainty as to where the organization stands and what happens next
  • The organization is struggling with generating enough revenue and this is putting pressure on your ability to effectively deliver on your mission

What should you do in these scenarios? We can help you get on track to accomplish your important mission. One of the tools we offer is an Organizational Assessment to help you clearly understand your current status and progress towards your goals.

Board Roles and Responsibilities

Board members should have specific roles and responsibilities to carry out the duties in their organization. In general though, each board member has the following 3 responsibilities:

Duty of Care

There is a legal responsibility for board members to participate in the decision making process of the organization and to use their best judgment in that regard.

Duty of Loyalty

The interests of the organization must come before personal and professional interests when making decisions on behalf of the organization.

Duty of Obedience

There is a legal responsibility to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local laws and faithfulness to the organization’s mission.

The Duty of Care can only be exercised if the board has good information on which to deliberate. A regular board assessment is critical to fulfilling this obligation but as important, to ensure the organization is on track to achieve its goals.