Governing with Purpose


Book Description

Nothing really prepares you for what it’s like to become a board trustee of a charity you believe in; nothing, that is, until now. This book talks you through how to become a brilliant board trustee, carry out your roles effectively and even enjoy the experience. Written by a current board member, for boards and their trustees, each chapter outlines the key approaches to take to become part of an empowered and brilliant board. Discover the principles of Governing with Purpose, and find out why governance and leadership are core values for board trustees. Above all, it speaks to the value of your role in leading a charity to achieve its objectives. Brian Cavanagh has over 25 years’ experience of governance and leadership in the public sector in Scotland. He is the CEO of Calibrate, a mentoring consultancy specializing in strategic leadership and board governance for the charity sector in UK and Ireland. Brian chairs an SME in Scotland and is a board member of a housing association in Ireland.




Benefit Corporation Law and Governance


Book Description

Corporations with a Conscience Corporations today are embedded in a system of shareholder primacy. Nonfinancial concerns—like worker well-being, environmental impact, and community health—are secondary to the imperative to maximize share price. Benefit corporation governance reorients corporations so that they work for the interests of all stakeholders, not just shareholders. This is the first authoritative guide to this new form of governance. It is an invaluable guide for legal and financial professionals, as well as interested entrepreneurs and investors who want to understand how purposeful corporate governance can be put into practice.




Governance as Leadership


Book Description

A new framework for helping nonprofit organizations maximize the effectiveness of their boards. Written by noted consultants and researchers attuned to the needs of practitioners, Governance as Leadership redefines nonprofit governance. It provides a powerful framework for a new covenant between trustees and executives: more macrogovernance in exchange for less micromanagement. Informed by theories that have transformed the practice of organizational leadership, this book sheds new light on the traditional fiduciary and strategic work of the board and introduces a critical third dimension of effective trusteeship: generative governance. It serves boards as both a resource of fresh approaches to familiar territory and a lucid guide to important new territory, and provides a road map that leads nonprofit trustees and executives to governance as leadership. Governance as Leadership was developed in collaboration with BoardSource, the premier resource for practical information, tools and best practices, training, and leadership development for board members of nonprofit organizations. Through its highly acclaimed programs and services, BoardSource enables organizations to fulfill their missions by helping build effective nonprofit boards and offering credible support in solving tough problems. For the latest in nonprofit governance, visit www.boardsource.org, or call us at 1-800-883-6262.




Governing by Principles


Book Description

There are lots of books and articles on governance in general. Many can be helpful, but few, maybe very few, actually show or explain a cohesive and comprehensive system of governance. Without a unified and encompassing system, boards will never be able to maximize their contribution to the organization and its purpose for existence. The purpose of this book is to make sure that they can.There is only one system that we have found which does address the above problem. That system is Policy Governance®.If you are on a Policy Governance board or any other type of board, this book will empower your governing.Based on input from multiple boards and ten's, and possibly more than a hundred, training sessions with boards we have determined that Policy Governance concepts make a positive change in a board's impact and that two specific insights can amplify that impact: 1.To understand and maximize the system's benefits, a board must deeply understand the principles of the system, the implications of those principles and their "1+1=5" synergy when used as a set.2.For a governing board to sustain this particular system, it needs to own it. The model must be truly owned by the board, using both ongoing study and diligence. It must become the board's culture, not just its governing system. This book will provide insight into the importance of the principles, their synergies as a whole, and, ultimately, amplifying the board's value and empowering the organization's purpose.




The Governance Core


Book Description

Lead into the future effectively with the Governance Core approach! Designed to guide educational leadership past difficult and formidable challenges, the governance system outlined in this book will lead to school districts and schools operating at the highest levels of effectiveness. Davis Campbell and Michael Fullan call for school boards, superintendents and school leaders to work cohesively with the same mindset to raise clarity, status, and efficacy. Practical and authentic, the Governance Core is based upon: A governance mindset A shared moral imperative A unified, cohesive governance system A commitment to system-wide coherence A focus on continuous improvement in the district




Governance of Natural Resources


Book Description

"Scholarly communities and policy experts have a tendency to divide natural resources into categories, hindering holistic understanding. Similarly, the stakeholders themselves--the state, business and people--are conceived monolithically, making it difficult to grasp how business interests, intra-bureaucratic politics and civil society movements influence policy outcomes. This book examines the socio-political dynamic generated by the environment and its attendant resources: how nature becomes a resource, and how this process in turn shapes our vision of society. It deploys a case study approach in examining the interactions between bureaucratic institutions; rural communities; national leaders and business elites, allowing for a more nuanced analysis. Particular emphasis is placed on how resources become the subject of conflict--but also opportunities for cooperation--and how different societies might establish more sustainable interactions with nature. The way society controls natural resources is the foundation of both economic development and environmental conservation. The primary motive for natural resource management has been the development and production of marketable commodities, and institutional structures have been shaped accordingly. The Social Constitution of Natural Resources asks that we re-consider the very concept of resources, and how we view them"--




Boards, Governance and Value Creation


Book Description

What is the role of boards in corporate governance? How should they be structured in order to maximize value creation? This 2007 book looks at the role of boards in a variety of different countries and contexts, from small and medium-sized enterprises to large corporations. It explores the working style of boards and how they can best achieve their task expectations. Board effectiveness and value creation are shown to be the results of interactions between owners, managers, board members and other actors. Board behaviour is thus seen to be a result of strategizing, norms, board leadership, and the decision-making culture within the boardroom. Combining value creation, behavioural and ethical approaches to the study of boards, this work offers a systematic framework which will be of value to graduate students and researchers in the field of corporate social responsibility and business ethics.




The Governance Committee


Book Description




Good Governance for Nonprofits


Book Description

Now even with limited resources, nonprofit leaders will learn how to: eliminate redundant or outdated policies; add new policies more effectively; clearly guide the CEO and evaluate his or her performance; ensure compliance with relevant legislation and regulations; understand why certain policies should be included; and adapt the authors' templates to their specific needs.




Transformational Governance


Book Description

There has never been so much pressure on nonprofit boards of directors to achieve a level of accountability that meets public and stakeholder expectations. Member-serving association boards may be especially challenged by their more complex affiliate structures and a greater emphasis on representative governance. But what does the journey to good governance look like? Markedly different from existing board development books, this modern approach focuses less on the behaviors and qualities of "high-performing boards" and more on the stages and processes that directors and their staff used to transform their boards. Based on research funded by the ASAE Foundation, the book fills a gap in the governance literature by emphasizing diagnosis and problem solving, using the actual tools and activities implemented by 85 transformed associations. Combining the credibility of scholarly research with lively and compelling stories, tools, and teachable moments, this book is designed to help associations and other nonprofit organizations achieve the entire journey to good governance, from first to last steps.