The Governing Board: Key Responsibilities for Boards and Board Members

Orient your board members to their key roles and responsibilities with this concise coverage of their duties and the role they should play in advancing your organization's mission.

This booklet, written by Nancy Axelrod, governance consultant and founding president of BoardSource, who herself has served on many governing and advisory boards, provides an overview of

• legal duties of the board and board members
• 4 key overlapping roles
• 3 characteriestics that distinguish great boards
• a fresh look at a 4-sighted board
• 10 tips for board members

Developed for the harried board member, this booklet will maximize both their training time and the time they serve on the board by helping them focus on strategic rather than operational matters.

Nancy R. Axelrod, a governance consultant based in Washington, DC, is a frequent speaker at conferences and leadership forums dedicated to governance, accountability, and board development. She is the founding president of BoardSource, where she served as its first chief executive officer from 1987 to 1996. She serves on the faculty of 'Exceptional Boards: Strengthening the Leadership Team' (an ASAE workshop for teams of board officers and chief executives) and the 'Institute for Presidents and Boards Chairs of Independent Colleges and Universities' (sponsored by the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges). Axelrod is the author of Governing for Growth: Using 7 Measures of Success to Strengthen Board Dialogue and Decision Making and its companion Governing for Growth Facilitator's Guide; Culture of Inquiry: Healthy Debate in the Boardroom; Advisory Councils; Chief Executive Succession Planning: Essential Guidance for Boards and CEOs; and numerous articles and op-ed pieces. She has served as a member of a number of governing and advisory boards.