Nonprofit Governance Models

Good governance is an essential element in the sustainability of nonprofits and leadership. Not all boards of nonprofits are well-run. In fact, a poorly governed board can cause the company to fail. Whether your nonprofit is just beginning its journey or has been operating for a while now, ensuring the effectiveness of your board will allow it to overcome obstacles and achieve long-term success.

The most crucial function of a nonprofit board is strategic vision development. Nonprofits need to select board members who are willing to commit the time and effort required for this task. This requires a thorough selection process to determine the ideal mix of diverse backgrounds, knowledge, and experiences. It’s important to provide training and support for both new and veteran members of the board as they work together and make top-level decisions for the non-profit.

If the board has a priority for strategic goals, they should be able trust the executive director to run the day-today operations for the non-profit. Nonprofits should not depend solely on the board committees for tasks related to operations. This could cause inefficiency and lack of accountability.

If a board of a non-profit organization doesn’t have an official CEO, it typically operates under the Cooperative Government Model. This is a democratized model that distributes power evenly among the board members. It is most effective when board members demonstrate equal commitment to the organization and a willingness to be accountable to each other for their actions. To minimize conflicts of interests the nonprofit must develop a well-written policy on conflict of interest and discuss it regularly with board members.

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