Overview: Board Operations and Systems

Written by Max | Edited by Rory Hart
Sections of this topic
    A board room

    © Copyright Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC.

    Vast majority of content in this topic applies to for-profits and nonprofits. This book also covers this topic.

    Developing, Operating and Restoring Your Nonprofit Board - Book Cover

    Sections of This Topic Include

    Also, consider
    Related Library Topics

    Learn More in the Library’s Blogs Related to This Topic

    In addition to the articles on this current page, also see the following blogs that have posts related to this topic. Scan down the blog’s page to see various posts. Also, see the section “Recent Blog Posts” in the sidebar of the blog or click on “Next” near the bottom of a post in the blog. The blog also links to numerous free related resources.

    Recurring, Annual Operations

    Boards meet their responsibilities usually by conducting certain major activities at certain times of the year. Often, the bylaws specify when certain activities will be conducted. Activities include, for example, conducting regular Board meetings (every month, two months, etc.), conducting the Board self-evaluation, evaluating the chief executive, reviewing and updating Board and personnel policies, conducting strategic planning, recruiting new members, holding an annual meeting, reviewing and authorizing the yearly budget, conducting fundraising (in the case of nonprofits), etc. The following sample Board Operations Calendar lists typical recurring activities of the Board and suggests the timing for these activities.
    Sample Board Operations Calendar

    Overall “System” of Board Operations

    Below, in the links about systems, are handy one-page depictions of the various inputs to the operations of a Board, the Board processes that influence those inputs, and the various outputs from Board operations. This information gives a concise “snapshot” of the recurring activities — the loop of activities — in a Board. The links about where Boards “fit” are one-page depictions that indicate the role of the Board in the overall planning, development, operations, and evaluations of the organization.

    For-Profit Boards

    Nonprofit Boards

    ›Return to All About Boards of Directors





    For the Category of Boards of Directors:

    To round out your knowledge of this Library topic, you may want to review some related topics, available from the link below. Each of the related topics includes free, online resources.

    Also, scan the Recommended Books listed below. They have been selected for their relevance and highly practical nature.


    Max