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What are the basic responsibilities of nonprofit boards?
By: BoardSource
Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards

1. Determine mission and purpose. It is the board’s responsibility to create and review a statement
   of mission and purpose that articulates the organization’s goals, means, and primary
   constituents served.
2. Select the chief executive. Boards must reach consensus on the chief executive’s responsibilities
   and undertake a careful search to find the most qualified individual for the position.
3. Support and evaluate the chief executive. The board should ensure that the chief executive has
   the moral and professional support he or she needs to further the goals of the organization.
4. Ensure effective planning. Boards must actively participate in an overall planning process and
   assist in implementing and monitoring the plan’s goals.
5. Monitor, and strengthen programs and services. The board’s responsibility is to determine
   which programs are consistent with the organization’s mission and monitor their effectiveness.
6. Fundraise. One of the board’s foremost responsibilities is to secure adequate resources for the
   organization to fulfill its mission.
7. Protect assets and provide proper financial oversight. The board must assist in developing the
   annual budget and ensuring that proper financial controls are in place.
8. Build a competent board. All boards have a responsibility to articulate prerequisites for
   candidates, orient new members, and periodically and comprehensively evaluate their own
   performance.
9. Ensure legal and ethical integrity. The board is ultimately responsible for adherence to legal
   standards and ethical norms.
10. Enhance the organization’s public standing. The board should clearly articulate the
    organization’s mission, accomplishments, and goals to the public and garner support from the
    community.

The post 10 Basic Nonprofit Board Responsibilities appeared first on Foundation for Shared Impact.

This manual is a collaborative work between Foundation for Shared Impact (FSI) and Macquarie Group Limited. Special thanks to Carl Fernando, Timmy Ho, and Deeviya Prasad.

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How to Use this Manual

This manual is intended to be used as a guide to the creation of any organization’s board manual template. Some of the language may not be applicable to your organization, and you may want to consider adding sections and documents that are relevant to your organization. We encourage you to utilize the prompts (in blue and red font) to craft your own board manual. Prompts that are highlighted in blue are tips for your consideration, and red are explanations of what needs to be included in the section.

This manual is a collaborative work between Foundation for Shared Impact (FSI) and Macquarie Group Limited. Special thanks to Carl Fernando, Timmy Ho, and Deeviya Prasad.

Table of Contents (for your own manual)

1. Background and Legal Information 1
   • 1.1 Brief History or Fact Sheet 1
   • 1.2 Press Releases or Articles 1
   • 1.3 Relevant Legal Documents 1
   • 1.4 Meeting Minutes 1
2. Financial Information
3. Strategic Framework
4. The Board
   • Board Members’ Names, Bios and Contact Information 4
5. Board Responsibilities
6. Board Member Responsibilities
   • 6.1 Board Member Terms
   • 6.2 Time Commitment
     [Include meeting attendance requirements and meeting schedule]
   • 6.3 Financial Commitment
   • 6.4 Fundraising
   • 6.5 Committee Chair/Member Commitment
7. Board Committees
   • 7.1 Governance and Board Development Committee
   • 7.2 Fundraising Committee
   • 7.3 Finance Committee
   • 7.4 Program Committee
   • 7.5 Risk Management Committee
8. Policies
9. Organizational Information

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Have a read of the questionnaire below if you cannot access the above.

The aim of this brief questionnaire is to assess your position as a member of the board and the performance of the board as a whole. The responses will be consolidated and used as guidance to improve the efficacy of the board.

Individual Self-Reflection

Please share your current experiences as a board member.

• What do you see as your role in the organization?
• How are you spending your time on the work you do for the organization?
• What are your goals for your current involvement?
• How much time are you currently spending on the organization each month?
• What are some areas you feel you can contribute the most and would like to get more involved in the future?
• What do you think have been your organization’s biggest challenges in the last few months? Have these challenges been addressed? Did you proactively contribute to finding solutions to the challenges?
• Do you feel you are encouraged to proactively seek ways to contribute?

Board Evaluation and Reflection

How is the board doing as a whole?

• What do you think are the key strengths of the board?
• Is the board capitalizing on these strengths?
• What are the main weaknesses?
• How is the organization addressing these weaknesses?
• Do you feel like individuals on the board are able to voice dissenting opinions? 
• Other board-related thoughts or comments?

A range of aspects for consideration: • Analysis of the Board’s structure and composition• Board recruitment process• Diversity of membership• Board induction and orientation• Board members’ knowledge of their roles and responsibilities and selection, support and training of the Chair• Commitment of Board members to the work of the Board and the organization• Tenure and independence of individual Board members• Board policies and processes including efficiency of Board meetings and decision making processes• Relationships between Board members and the capacity to address conflict constructively• Frequency and quality of information flows and presentations it receives• Board’s commitment and practice of regular reviews, including reviews of individual Directors • Frequency of Board meetings and attendance at meetings • Decision-making processes of the Board.

Board Support and Involvement

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Can’t access the above? Read an excerpt here.

This Guide aims to provide Boards of charities in Singapore with useful considerations for nominating and appointing Board Members. A useful starting point is to consider the strategic relevance of reflecting diversity in terms of skillset, experience, gender, age, ethnicity, and other forms of demography on their Boards. Boards that continually assess their structure and composition will be better placed to maintain their strategic focus, meet the needs of the organization, serve beneficiaries, and optimize organisational performance.

Enhancing Board diversity is crucial for accomplishing the charity’s goals. Out of the varied elements of diversity, gender diversity is one of the easiest to demonstrate and therefore an aspect of diversity that Boards should actively pursue. Besides being a visible and important aspect of diversity, there is also a substantial pool of talented women suitable for charity Boards and many avenues to find them.

This Guide recommends and highlights:

• ‘Foundational standards’ – this comprises mandatory requirements consistent with the Charities Act and its subsidiary legislations such as the Charities (Registration of Charities) Regulations, Charities (Accounts and Annual Report) Regulations, Charities (Large Charities) Regulations. It also refers to the Code of Governance for Charities and IPCs’ guidelines under the Basic and Intermediate tiers;
• ‘Exemplary standards’ – these are current best practices that charities could aspire towards as they see to enhance their standards of accountability, transparency and good governance. This also includes some of the guidelines under the Enhanced and Advanced tiers of the Code of Governance for Charities and IPCs.

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Template of Job Description

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Guide on Board’s Liabilities

Disclaimer

The information provided on this document or website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice or as a substitute for the particularized advice of your own counsel. All information, content, and materials available on this website are for general informational purposes only, and they may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information. This website contains links to other third-party websites, and such links are only for the convenience of the reader, user or browser. These links to third-party websites or information are not intended as, and should not be interpreted by you as, constituting or implying our endorsement, sponsorship, or recommendation of the third party information, products, or services found there. We do not maintain or control these sites and, accordingly, make no guarantee concerning the accuracy, reliability or currency of the information found there.

This guide has been drafted with the support of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius.

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