Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards

Leadership and Governance in Times of Crisis: A Balancing Act for Nonprofit Boards

“…The complex interdependence between leadership and governance in NPOs (see Chait et al, 2011;Heimovics et al, 1993;McClusky, 2002), as well as the abrupt organizational changes brought on by the pandemic, have amplified the balance between leadership and managerial activities at all levels of the organization. While leadership and the skills needed to navigate crises successfully have been discussed in the literature (Gilstrap et al, 2016), less scholarly attention has been devoted specifically to how nonprofit boards contribute to organizational responses to crises.…”

Unveiling the microfoundations of philanthropic foundations: A call for comprehensive research of people and practices

“…For example, microfoundations can help us understand how foundation managers decide which causes to support, how they allocate resources, and how they measure the impact of their work. The view can help to clarify how Trustees and Directors enact their fiduciary, strategic, and generative duties (Chait et al, 2005). It can demonstrate the changing nature of foundation professional roles, viewing how their titles, duties, and expectations have changed over time, impacting how foundations are managed (Fugiel Gartner et al, 2023).…”

The Evolution of Nonprofit Governance Research: Reflections, Insights, and Next Steps

“…Both reviews highlight that the research focused largely on board and member roles and responsibilities, especially the nature and implications of board composition, as well as board capacity and development, the complexity of the board-executive relationship, and the relationship between board effectiveness and organizational effectiveness. In spite of the launch of a major initiative to identify new and more effective ways for boards to function (i.e., the "Governance Futures: New Perspectives on Nonprofit Governance" project), no fundamentally new approaches to governance were identified (Chait et al, 2004). Chait and colleagues did reconceptualize governance and underscored how board composition could affect board focus, role performance, and decision tendencies.…”

“…Since the 1980s, interest has grown with regard to the roles performed by boards, and how and why they vary or evolve given different contexts and contingencies (Renz & Andersson, 2014). Chait et al (2004) differentiate three distinct types of nonprofit governance work: fiduciary, strategic, and generative, and multiple studies affirm boards perform three primary functions: controlling and monitoring; coaching and enabling; and fundraising and resource development (Cornforth, 2004;Miller-Millesen, 2003;Ostrower & Stone, 2006). Importantly, these sometimes conflict, resulting in tensions boards must address.…”

“…Board capacity and development. Given the importance of boards, and the general level of frustration many express for inadequate board performance (Chait et al, 2004), several have assessed the efficacy of initiatives to enhance board capacity and performance. Holland and Jackson (1998) documented the value of focus on the development of three dimensions of governance-the formal, the behavioral structures, and behavioral processes, and they and others around the world document the value of well-grounded, systematic planned board development approaches (including selfassessment-based online approaches) for board improvement (e.g., Gill et al, 2005;Harrison & Murray, 2015;Lichtsteiner & Lutz, 2012).…”