THEBOARDCHECKUP: A RESEARCH-BASED PODCAST

by Professor Yvonne D. Cafik, PhD

THEBOARDCHECKUP explores the subject of board performance with leaders of nonprofit organizations around the world interested in nonprofit governance as well as those who used the online tool known as Board Checkup to self-assess board performance. In Season 1, each episode is a case study profiling a different board and organization as well as trends in the external environment driving change in governance. Board motivation ...   ...  Read more
Management
Non-Profit
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Podcast episodes

  • Season 2

  • Board Research to Practice: Board Meetings

    Board Research to Practice: Board Meetings

    S02 E06
    58:00

    For many people, especially those new to board work, the belief is that the main work of the board takes place at official, formal meetings. In fact, a great deal of important work takes place outside of board meetings. Nevertheless, boards are required to hold formal meetings and the quality of those meetings can make a considerable difference to board effectiveness. Meetings that are poorly organized, go on too long,, go off on tangents instead of sticking to the point, or feature too many personalities can turn off even the most dedicated member and can cause serious damage by leading to poorly considered decisions. In this podcast, Profs Cafik and Murray explores board effectiveness in the board meeting context, challenges boards commonly experience with meetings, why they persist, and the research on what boards have changed to increase meeting effectiveness.

  • Board Research to Practice: Board Structures and Operating Procedures

    Board Research to Practice: Board Structures and Operating Procedures

    S02 E05
    38:33

    All boards have some formality that specifies and supports the way the board governs and operates. Once structures and procedures are in place they often come to be taken for granted and their influence on the board goes unrecognized. The result is that they are rarely reviewed in assessments of board performance and updated. This episode explores board structures and procedures, defining what they are and the role they play in board governance. The episode also explores common challenges boards experience with structures and procedures, why they occur, and change boards have implemented in response to them.

  • Board Research to Practice : The Board’s Role in Fundraising

    Board Research to Practice : The Board’s Role in Fundraising

    S02 E04
    28:33

    Effectively performing the board's role in fundraising and developing resources for the organization is the most common challenge reported by both board members and those with whom they interact. Dissatisfaction can come from lack of clarity of the board's role in fundraising, activities related to fundraising, and/or lack of capability to engage in fundraising. This webinar explores the main reasons for dissatisfaction with the board's role, how to diagnose fundraising challenges, and what boards have done about them to increase success.

  • Board Research to Practice : The Board's Role in Performance Assessment

    Board Research to Practice : The Board's Role in Performance Assessment

    S02 E03
    48:34

    Board of nonprofit organizations are required to exert due diligence in ensuring that the organizations they govern are achieving their missions effectively and efficiently. But what about due diligence assessments of board performance to ensure the board is governing effectively and meeting accountability objectives. In this podcast, Professor Yvonne Cafik, PhD explores what due diligence looks like in the board performance assessment context, the issues that challenge boards, why they exist, and general approaches to improving the board's ability to carry out the full range of performance assessment responsibilities.

  • Board Research to Practice : The Board's Role in Planning

    Board Research to Practice : The Board's Role in Planning

    S02 E02
    50:56

    It is commonly accepted "best practice" that a major role for boards ought to be thinking about the "big picture" of how the organization is doing and where it ought to be heading in the future. It is usually recommended that this kind of thinking be captured in a "Strategic Plan" which can be used as a guide by all in the organization in making specific policy decisions. In this webinar, the Board's Role in Planning is discussed, challenges boards commonly experience, why they occur, and what boards have done about them.