A couple of years ago we wrote a short article on the importance of good Behavioural Governance in charities and social enterprises. In the testing times we are all experiencing since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, good Behavioural Governance is, in our view, all the more important for charities and social enterprises to survive, thrive and further their mission for the benefit of their communities.

What is Behavioural Governance?

Behavioural Governance is a rethinking of the way corporate governance is approached; placing less emphasis on structures, processes and documentation and focusing more on effective (and ineffective) behaviours. It encompasses a wide range of issues including consideration of subjects such as group dynamics, the role of personality types in making boards effective or not, what makes for effective meetings (and charing) and ethical decision making.

In our experience there remains a complacency in the charity and social enterprise sectors around Behavioural Governance. This appears to be born out of a myth that standards of behaviour in the not-for-profit sector are better than the devious, underhand, dirty behaviours found in the corporate world! The various charity scandals and governance failures of the last few years show this to be demonstrably wrong. The Charity Governance Code (shortly to be updated) has long recognised this with its emphasis on behavioural matters, including ethical conduct, personal integrity and the important of diversity.

What characterises good Behavioural Governance in charities?

Good Behavioural Governance practice is hard to define comprehensively and there is an increasingly overwhelming body of literature on the subject for the avid reader. In pressured times, however, most people don’t have the time to read extensively on the subject and so we offer the following checklist of good practice that we consider characterises the essentials of good Behavioural Governance.

1. Collective responsibility and teamwork: after robust debate, do all your Trustees unite behind decisions, even when they disagreed in the boardroom? Do your Trustees work as a team?

2. Genuine respect for, and valuing of, diversity: is your charity really striving to ensure the Board represents a wide diversity of backgrounds and expertise? Are you able to manage the culture clashes and misunderstandings that can arise in a diverse Board, through constructive challenge and feedback?

3. Building trust: is there a high level of trust between members of the Board? Do Trustees understand each others’ motivations, is communication open and are they able to reach sensible compromises?

4. Praise enables challenge: do your Trustees regularly praise staff and volunteers for the good work they do? Research suggests that if they do they will be in a stronger position to challenge constructively and hold them to account..

5. Being constructive and respectful: questioning is an essential part of a Trustee’s role, but do your Trustees do this constructively and respectfully? Do they avoid repetitive questioning in pursuit of a “hobby horse” or when adequate answers have already been provided? Are so called “silly questions” encouraged?

6. Managing conflicts of interest: do your Trustees register and declare personal interests and are these properly managed by excluding those with a conflict from consideration of issues? Do Trustees act with integrity or do those with a conflict of interest try to influence decisions that they should be excluded from? If a Trustee is appointed or elected by an external body or stakeholder group do they, nonetheless, act in the interests of the charity as a whole, in accordance with the legal duty to do so?

7. Good attendance and preparation: do your Trustees regularly turn up to Board and committee meetings and have they prepared well for those meetings? Are they attentive (listening well) and engaged (joining in) when they are present?

8. Effective chairing: are meetings well chaired? Does the chair ensure everyone gets a say while keeping the meeting on track? Do they prevent decision making being dominated by any single Trustee or senior member of staff (including themselves) or a small group of Trustees?

9. Regular, constructive feedback: is this a feature of relationships in your charity - between the chair and Trustees, between Trustees and staff and between Trustees? How well would you deal with a difficult Trustee or senior member of staff? Do you hold regular Board/Trustee performance reviews? Is conflict within the Board or with wider stakeholders handled effectively.

10. Code of conduct: has your charity established clear expectations of behaviour in a Trustees’ code of conduct?

While this checklist isn’t perfect, we offer it as a starting point for thinking about this vital issue for good governance. We hope it helps your Trustees engage in a constructive debate about how they can govern your charity better.

To find out more about the governance support and training we offer, please contact us at julian@almondtreeconsulting.co.uk to arrange free initial telephone discussion.