Topic 3 of 15 · Governance and boards
Nonprofit board governance: roles, responsibilities and health checks
Free nonprofit board governance guides and board self-assessments for nonprofit and NGO boards, chairs and directors.
- 13 resources
- 12 free
- 4 tools and templates
- 4 sub-topics
A good board is a quiet asset. It asks hard questions, backs the director when things wobble and keeps the organisation legal. A weak one costs you time every month and leaves you exposed when a crisis lands.
This shelf covers the basics of what boards do, how to find and bring on new members, how the chair and chief executive work together, and how to check whether your governance is working. There are guides from the US, UK, West Africa, Nigeria, Chile and Québec.
You need this shelf if
- Board meetings are reports read aloud with little real discussion
- You need new board members and don't know where to look
- The line between the board's job and the director's job is blurry
- A funder or regulator has asked about your governance
Key questions for leaders
- Does your board spend most of its time on the future or on reports about the past? Purpose-Driven Board Leadership →
- Which skills, networks and perspectives is your board missing? Getting on Board free guides →
- Is the line between the board's job and the director's job clear to everyone? Boards of Directors and Governance Systems →
- How do your chair and chief executive work together, and how often do they talk? A question of balance →
- When did your board last review its own performance, and what changed after? Good Governance: A Health Check →
What's on the shelf
3.1 Board roles and responsibilities
- 3.1C028
Boards of Directors and Governance Systems
A practical guide to strengthening NGO boards, first written in Spanish for organisations in Latin America, where board development tools adapted to local culture and language were scarce. The English version followed requests from outside the region. It walks through board roles, structures and governance systems in practical steps, with tools that boards and executive directors can apply to their own organisation.
Start hereClassicKey manual or guideFree - 3.1C029
Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards
A short book that sets out the 10 core responsibilities of a nonprofit board and places them in the context of current governance challenges. It separates the board's role from that of the chief executive and senior staff, and it has 2 appendices: one on the individual duties of board members and a sample self-assessment for board members. It is part of BoardSource's 6-book Governance Series and is used in board induction and role descriptions.
ClassicKey manual or guideBook - 3.1C030
Charity Governance Code
A voluntary governance code for UK charities of any size. It sets out 8 principles with 41 outcomes, and each principle comes with suggested behaviours, examples of policies and processes, and suggested evidence of good governance. Boards apply it on an apply or explain basis and are encouraged to publish a short statement in their annual report on how they use it. Smaller charities can use it to spot gaps as they grow.
CurrentKey manual or guideFree - 3.1C031
Effective Board Governance for Civil Society Organisations
An article on how the boards of civil society organisations develop over time in the African context. Drawing on WACSI's work with CSOs, the author looks at the stages of board development, asks whether boards move through them in a fixed order and discusses how to diagnose the health of a board. CSO leaders and board members use it to place their own board on that path and decide what to work on next.
CurrentShort readFree - 3.1C032
Guía para la Gobernanza Efectiva de Fundaciones y Corporaciones en Chile
A Spanish-language governance guide for foundations and nonprofit corporations in Chile, based on research with local organisations. It sets out a model with 4 pillars: clarity of purpose, the right board composition, how the board works and divides tasks with the executive director, and legitimacy and relations with the wider community. Annexes list recommended governance guides and the duties of board members. Boards use it to review their own practice.
CurrentKey manual or guideFree - 3.1C033
Board Governance Toolkit
A toolkit for the boards and executive leaders of civil society organisations, from the Board Governance Hub of the Nigeria Network of NGOs. It offers practical guidance, self-assessment tools, checklists, templates and recommended actions for organisations setting up governance structures or improving existing ones, including how to work within Nigeria's regulatory requirements. It is free to download after filling in a short form.
EmergingTool or templateFree with sign-up - 3.1C034
Guide de gouvernance pour les organismes à but non lucratif du milieu du sport et du loisir au Québec
A French-language governance guide for nonprofits in sport and recreation in Québec, many of them run by volunteers. Part 1 covers roles and responsibilities and the legal setting. Part 2 covers board structure and composition, board duties, how the board works and transparency. Nine annexes provide tools, including a board self-evaluation questionnaire, a board work plan, a skills grid, an executive director evaluation grid and a management dashboard.
EmergingKey manual or guideFree
3.2 Board recruitment, composition and diversity
- 3.2C036
Getting on Board free guides
A set of free practical guides for UK charities on trustee recruitment and board diversity. How to Diversify Your Board gives advice, case studies and templates for recruitment and onboarding. How to Recruit Trustees for Your Charity draws on 30 charities and includes skills audit and advert templates and an 8-step recruitment process. From Here to Diversity, from Action for Trustee Racial Diversity, covers recruiting Black and Asian trustees.
Start hereCurrentKey manual or guideFree - 3.2C035
Board Appointment Guide for Charities
A guide for charity boards in Singapore on composing, renewing and recruiting a board. It has 5 sections: the role of the board, 10 steps to compose the board, how to nominate and appoint new members, board culture and relationships with the chair and executive head, and how to attract new members. Appendices give sample terms of reference, a term-limits example and a diversity matrix for mapping skills and gaps.
CurrentKey manual or guideFree
3.3 Board and CEO relationship
- 3.3C037
A question of balance
A guide for charity chairs and chief executives on building a working relationship. Based on interviews with 22 chairs and chief executives, it weighs different approaches to the chair's part in day-to-day operations, who represents the charity in public, how close the two should be and how to balance challenge and support. It finds no single formula, so it asks both people to be self-aware, invest time and adjust when the relationship is not working.
Start hereClassicKey manual or guideFree
3.4 Governance assessment
- 3.4C039
Good Governance: A Health Check
A board self-assessment tied to the Code of Good Governance (3rd edition) in Northern Ireland. It has 92 questions across 5 principles: understanding the board's role, working as a team, control and risk, integrity, and openness and accountability. Boards rate each item not met, part met or fully met, record evidence against suggested prompts and fill in an action table for each principle with actions, owners and dates.
Start hereCurrentTool or templateFree - 3.4C038
Oak Foundation Governance Assessment Tool
A framework for assessing the practices and processes of a grantee's governing body. Oak programme officers use it during due diligence and through the grant to give boards a consistent assessment, to discuss with grantees what an effective board looks like and to track governance over time. It also helps programme officers spot where capacity-building support would help and orients new staff to Oak's view of good governance.
ClassicTool or templateFree - 3.4C040
Purpose-Driven Board Leadership
A discussion guide that helps a board apply BoardSource's 4 principles of purpose-driven board leadership: purpose before organisation, respect for the ecosystem, an equity mindset, and authorised voice and power. It offers 3 exercises: discussing a case from the Museum of Us, reviewing the board's most recent major decision against each principle, and working through an upcoming decision together. Boards use it in meetings and retreats.
CurrentTool or templateFree
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