How do all players work as a team?
- This is something the chair needs to lead on, ensuring that at meetings all board members contribute and there are no over-riding voices and no on-going individual pre-occupations; also that board members’ skills, wisdom and experience are fully used.
- Given the skills and experience of board members, it is usually a sign of good governance if the details of board members are listed on the organisation’s website, with short biographies and, preferably, photographs which help staff and those outside the organisation to recognise board members and which also highlight the diversity of the board.
- Note also that Companies Limited by Guarantees (CLG) must keep their Companies House record up to date, with the names and correspondence addresses of all of their board members (which can be the organisation’s main address) using the WebFiling service through a GOV.UK One Login here
- Charities must also keep their Charity Commission records up to date via the My Charity Commission Account service here
- Board members should be encouraged to attend as many events as possible, including those representing all the organisation’s activities. An annual social event attended by board members and staff helps general bonding. All board members should be supplied with each other’s contact details to enable ease of communication if so desired.
- Charity Commission guidance clearly sets out trustees’ duty to make decisions ‘jointly’ or ‘collectively’. It is therefore important that every board member’s voice is heard and decisions are not deferred to one dominant board member.
- Not all trustees will agree with all decisions (and dissenting views can be recorded in meeting minutes) but each is jointly responsible for decisions made even if they were absent from a meeting, did not take part in a decision or did not vote for a decision.
- Constructive debate and challenge are signs of healthy governance, setting aside personal interests or motives in favour of the organisation’s best interests.
- Please also see relevant chapters in this guide’s earlier section: ‘Board Meetings & Recruitment’.
- The entire organisation must understand its shared purpose for everyone to work as a team.
- Clear communication, defined roles and responsibilities, and a shared understanding of the business/operational plan led by senior management will be the foundation for staff teamwork.
- Volunteers and supporters are often the frontline players in a charity or not-for-profit, directly engaging with beneficiaries and providing essential resources. Successful teamwork requires good training (where needed), clear expectations, and consistent recognition from their volunteer managers or other staff.
