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Charities are at the heart of social ecosystems and play a vital role in building and sustaining flourishing communities. Yet, charities face several ...
Articles on Governance and Leadership in Purpose Driven Organisations.
Board Performance & Metrics
The Elephant in the (Board)Room
In almost every survey of boards, directors reveal that they are unhappy with the performance of one or more of their boardroom colleagues. They usually then continue to reveal that their board has done nothing to remedy the poor performance. For example, the 2018 PwC Annual Corporate Directors Survey showed that 45% of directors believed that one or more of their board colleagues should have been replaced. The McKinsey Global Governance Survey2 showed that 67% of directors served on a board where one or more directors should have been removed.
Julie Garland McLellan
Board Dynamics
The Role of the Critical Friend for Directors
I sit on probably as many boards as you do, and I work with about 20 boards each and every month doing our strategy and innovation work. So, after 25 years, I’ve seen a good few in action, warts and all. My life is probably like yours. Life outside the board meeting is busy enough. Like master logisticians, we have to sort out kids, partners and businesses in order just to get to our board meetings.
George Liacos
Legal
Changing ATO Guidance For Sporting Club Income Tax Exempt Status
Taxation Ruling Income tax: exempt sporting clubs (“TR97/22”) is the formal public ruling issued by the Australian Taxation Office (“ATO”) on 3 December 1997 and applies “to sporting organisations seeking to determine whether they are exempt from income tax”. TR97/22 states it “is to assist a club’s office holders to determine whether their club is exempt from income tax”. A club which has a main purpose of sport (or sports) will be exempt from income tax pursuant to section 50-45 Item 9.
Victor Hamit
Governance
An Effective Strategy Execution Framework
Realise your not-for-profit organisation’s vision in a simple yet effective way. Not-for-profit organisations generally have a strong sense of purpose. They passionately can put into words why they exist, what is important and what the future state of a better world will look like. However, many Not-for-profits struggle to articulate how they will achieve their vision. Development and execution of strategy is often seen as a complex, time-consuming and costly process, or there may be confusion regarding what strategy actually is.
Dagmar Parsons
A Positive Wind-Up For The Centre For Sustainability Leadership
After 13 years of training and support, the Centre of Sustainability Leadership (CSL) reached a natural end to its ground-breaking run. Under the guidance of the board, CSL is handing over its intellectual property, brand and the 1000+ alumni to the Monash Sustainable Development Institute (MSDI). ‘Sustainability’ was a word that offered optimism and opportunity when co-founders Larissa Brown and Jason Clarke kicked off CSL back in 2004. Larissa was the visionary who seeded the leadership training idea through the Greensteps Program for Monash Sustainable Development Program.
Helga Svendsen
Leadership
Get Real: What Are The Questions Boards Need to be Asking During Mergers and Acquisitions?
So you’re on a not-for-profit board and the question of a merger or acquisition comes up. What’s your primary objective as a board member as you navigate these often complex discussions? Is it: To safeguard the organisation’s legacy? To rigorously examine the potential business case and its financial viability? To thoroughly explore the risks and push for detailed due diligence on the potential partner? To dust off your AICD training (or get legal advice) on your fiduciary duties as a Director during a transaction?
Malcolm Garrow
The Collective Voice – A Crucial Leadership Element
Numerous professional development resources dispense advice with the presumption that directors will approach objectives with a shared attitude and intent, that the board will reach a consensual decision and speak with a collective voice. The reality is that often this is far from the case. Resolution can be difficult and that collective voice may be impossible to achieve. While healthy dissent can be a sign of an effective board, differences – habitually ill-managed – are obvious drivers that can lead to substantive leadership and organisational damage.
Marcia Pinskier
Reforming an NFP Service Provider: It Starts with the Board
Remember the halcyon days of government outsourcing, before the introduction of individualised, contract funding for social services? This was a time when the not-for-profit service provider could maintain ‘business as usual’ in the satisfying knowledge that the next government grant was due, in advance, for defined services, to a specific client cohort. Back then, governance and accountability were within the ability of community committees. There was little need for unitary costing, transaction cost economics, growth strategies and grand marketing plans.
Greg Smith
Top Tips For Developing Collaborative Leaders
To illustrate how workforce requirements are changing, the DDI Global Leadership Survey (2018) found that collaborating within and across organisational boundaries is regarded by CEOs as a premium capability. Working collaboratively is harder than your leaders might think because it’s about balancing common agendas with individual goals. For example, when helping leaders from grassroots community organisations, not-for-profits, government departments and the business sector come together in a regional New South Wales town to pursue indigenous employment outcomes, we first focused on articulating the common goal and developing collaborative ways of working, which contributed to its success.
Phil Preston
Practical Ways To Improve Boardroom Dynamics
It is now widely recognised that board dynamics are a central driver in producing strong organisational outcomes. This involves not only the relationships among board members but also between the board and senior management. However, this can a difficult area for boards to deal with even when dysfunctional relationships are hindering good governance and impeding sound decision‑making. The following are some practical ways in which a board can reinforce or improve its dynamics.
James Beck