This is the second blog by Liz Lowther, CEO of AoC, about this research. Read the first blog.
In my last blog we explored the AoC, ACEVO and nfpResearch into board behaviours and dynamics – what it revealed about what CEOs and chairs want from each other, and how the research highlighted the importance of support for both leaders. In this blog, I’ll explore a few more of the findings and what they mean for chairs, CEOs, and boards, with some practical actions to think about.
Helping chairs to be effective
In the research we found a disconnect between CEO and chair opinions of chair inductions. CEOs were more likely to think chairs are well inducted than chairs themselves. This disconnect is concerning, because a good induction is vital to orientate a new chair, and help them feel confident and informed.
In addition, the research found that chair appraisals are in place at only a quarter of organisations. Again, this is worrying – appraisals help to regularly review what’s going well and what isn’t. They can identify areas of weakness or where the chair needs more support. If a solid induction and regular appraisals are missing, the chair is lacking two important things which can help them be more effective in their role.
Fortunately, these are two things that can be easily put in place at most organisations, even the smallest.
What you can do
- Ensure an effective chair induction is in place: Use the free A Chair’s Compass as a good source of information for structuring an induction. Identify any areas where the chair may need support or training and look for sources for these, such as the AoC Chairing Essentials webinars.
- Chair appraisals: Agree an appraisal approach and schedule for the chair. Think about ongoing reflection and feedback, as well as a more structured annual review, and who is best to lead on this. AoC has templates for chair appraisals, and member resources on how to conduct them.
Helping your board to be effective
To have an effective charity, you need an effective board. But only 4% of respondents rated their board as highly effective.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, those most likely to think their board is effective are from larger charities who are more likely to have resources to put into governance reviews and governance support.
What makes an effective board? The research found that the board’s ability to balance support and challenge of the CEO and senior team is the single most important factor, followed by trustees understanding their roles and responsibilities.
According to the research findings, the most effective boards are not those that prioritise consensus and shared outlook, but those that bring diverse perspectives and constructive tension to the table.
What you can do:
- Ensuring the right balance of support and challenge between the CEO and the board: Our guide A Question of Balance contains a lot of suggestions and information about how to balance support and challenge. An updated version will be released later this year.
- Make sure trustees understand their roles and responsibilities: This starts from the recruitment process, making sure a full role description is part of the recruitment materials, and putting in place a thorough induction which also identifies if the trustee has any support or training needs. We have free trustee recruitment templates you can download and use, and recruitment resources on our website. Our Board Essentials training webinars may also be helpful for new or existing trustees to help them understand, or refresh their knowledge of, their responsibilities.
- Diverse perspectives: Read more about recruiting a diverse board on our EDI page and download our free board EDI guide It starts from the top , which is packed full of practical suggestions you can implement to help your board be more diverse and inclusive.
- Board effectiveness for small charities: Smaller boards are less likely to say their board is highly effective. The Charity Governance Code has a set of principles that all charities, regardless of size or complexity, should be able to follow , and it is free to download. This is a good framework for reviewing your board effectiveness, particularly if resources are limited.
