Home Library Translate
A A A
Share »
Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Follow us on LinkedIn
Connect »

Blog: Boards of Directors

Menu

  • This Blog's Home
  • Guest Writer Submissions
  • Policies
  • To Subscribe to a Blog
  • About
  • Feedback

Introduction — Removing the Mystique About Boards

By Carter McNamara on March 31, 2010

Many people have the impression that a Board of Directors is a group of very wise people who sit in a very special room and make very complex deliberations and decisions. Actually, most Board members are people just like us who are trying their best to understand what’s going on and what to do about it. However, recent history has shown that some Board members are not doing their fiduciary duties — they’re merely doing whatever the CEO tells them to do. The irony is that the law expects the CEO to work for the Board, not the other way around.

In this blog, we’ll discuss the role of a Board of a for-profit and nonprofit corporation. We’ll discuss Board members’ roles and responsibilities, how members are selected and trained, how they make decisions and how they are supposed to ensure their operations are always high-quality. We’ll discuss how the members and CEO can best work together. We’ll also review how members can accomplish strong governance of each of the most important functions in an organization.

There is an increasing number of laws and regulations about Boards and for a variety of reasons. Recent and very public scandals have resulted in massive layoffs and losses in investments, along with some executives going to prison. Also, there is public outrage at the sizes of CEO compensation. We don’t know all of these laws and regulations, so I’m hoping readers with that knowledge will chip in to enlighten the rest of us.

This list of topics gives more detail about the types of topics we’ll likely cover and their order. However, it’s not uncommon that the topics in a blog tend to follow the wishes of the readers — a blog should be about the readers at least as much as about the blogger’s opinions.

What topics would you like to read? What questions do you have about Boards?

« Previous Next »

Search Our Site

Meet this Blog’s Co-Hosts

Carter McNamara of Authenticity Consulting, LLC, provides organization development and consultant training services, and is developer of the Free Management Library. [Read more ...]


Julie Garland-McLellan uses her experience and depth of knowledge in corporate governance to show boards with limited resources how to be more effective through practical governance innovation and know-how.
[Read more ...]


Nick Lindsay of Elemental CoSec, provides corporate governance, legal and company secretarial advice to a wide range of companies in the UK.
[Read more ...]

Recent Blog Posts

  • Will beneficial ownership registers spread around the World?
  • Governing an entrepreneur – a dilemma
  • Can a director serve two interests? – a dilemma
  • When a director knows what isn’t in the papers – a dilemma
  • Should the MD have a vote? – a dilemma
  • Association boards and conflicts of interest – a dilemma
  • Issues for a prospective owner director – a dilemma
  • 51% compliance with the UK Corporate Governance Code
  • 10 Myths About Boards of Directors
  • How to manage excessive demands on time (from a powerful person)? – a dilemma

Categories of Posts

  • Accountabilities, Laws and Ethics
  • Basics and Overviews
  • Basics and Overviews
  • Board Committees
  • Board Evaluations
  • Board Meetings
  • Board Membership
  • Board Training and Dev.
  • General Resources
  • Recurring Activities
  • Roles and Responsibilities
  • Supervising CEO
  • Uncategorized

Related Library Topics

  • Board / Employees Roles
  • Board Basics
  • Board Development
  • Board Models
  • Board Operations
  • Board Policies
  • Board Staffing
  • Board Training
  • Committees
  • Compensation of Members
  • Evaluating the Board
  • Laws and Ethics
  • Meetings
  • Roles and Responsibilities

Library's Blogs

  • Boards of Directors
  • Building a Business
  • Business Communications
  • Business Ethics, Culture and Performance
  • Business Planning
  • Career Management
  • Coaching and Action Learning
  • Consulting and Organizational Development
  • Crisis Management
  • Customer Service
  • Facilitation
  • Free Management Library Blogs
  • Fundraising for Nonprofits
  • Human Resources
  • Leadership
  • Marketing and Social Media
  • Nonprofit Capacity Building
  • Project Management
  • Quality Management
  • Social Enterprise
  • Spirituality
  • Strategic Planning
  • Supervision
  • Team Building and Performance
  • Training and Development
About Feedback Legal Privacy Policy Contact Us
Free Management Library, © Copyright Authenticity Consulting, LLC ®; All rights reserved.
  • Graphics by Wylde Hare LLC
  • Website maintained by Caitlin Cahill

By continuing to use this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy.X