Governance

As governments cut back on funding, it is up to the effectiveness of the community boards to step in and try and provide many of the services that contribute to the quality of life we require. Members of nonprofit boards are usually volunteers, which also means that they aren't the best at carrying out their responsibilities. Moreover, governance is the board's legal authority to exercise power and authority over an organization on behalf of the community it serves (BoardSource Staff). It is the job of the board to establish a foundation for the organization at hand and is authorized to make decisions that will affect that organization. Finally, there are four types of governance models the board can adhere to including; the traditional model, the corporate model, the policy governance model, and lastly the dynamic or high impact model.

Policy governance: Policy governance, as indicated by Dr. John Carver, is a groundbreaking model of governance designed to empower boards of directors to fulfill the obligation of accountability for the organizations they govern. It is a complete theory as it informs board planning, mission, control of the agenda, budgeting, relationships in all aspects, fiduciary responsibility, and all other aspects of the board. This model is a thorough example of the board being in control and having complete leadership. The job of the board in the policy model is simply to govern. As a whole, not individually, the board will govern the organization. Therefore, this means that the CEO is bound by whatever the board says. For example, if the CEO is in favor of one thing but the board is not the CEO is out of luck. However, the CEO is not bound by what any one board member says. The board is in charge of governing themselves as well as the staff. In better words, the CEO is just kind of there. He is not the one making the executive decisions and he is not responsible for keeping the board happy. It is completely on the board to govern