Strengthening Governance: A customised series for Board Directors

Strengthening Governance: A customised series for Board Directors

This customised Governance series was developed to meet not-for-profit education community organisation Board needs. It included online information and coaching sessions for CCA member Board Directors, Chairs and CEOs. The sessions were designed to be accurate, useful, accessible and relevant to CCA member organisation concerns. They were supported by information, resources and the opportunity to engage with an informal community of sector colleagues and leaders.

Each of the five Modules were recorded and remain available for CCA Members within the CCA Member Hub. CCA Members can access the modules and participate in discussions on this topic via the Governance Group within the CCA Member Hub. Please contact CCA if you don't have access.

  1. Governance Fundamentals
  2. Confident Commercial Boardroom Conversations
  3. Industry Specific Knowledge
  4. Board Effectiveness and Culture and Advanced Governance
  5. Strategy and Risk Management

Facilitator - Jayne Blake

These sessions were facilitated by Jayne Blake, an experienced governance consultant who developed the  program content after surveying and talking with CCA member organisations.

Session content

Session 1: Governance Fundamentals for Directors

Session Content:

  • Governance principles, general regulatory framework and key requirements
  • Director responsibilities, obligations and liabilities, understanding insolvency and safe harbour
  • Governance vs management
  • Ethics in the boardroom
  • Basics of cyber security principles, data protection and privacy

Session 2: Confident Commercial Boardroom Conversations

Session content:

  • Financial acumen and reporting rigour, questions to protect yourself and your organisation
  • Understanding trends, key financial ratios and metrics
  • Solvency – how to monitor, and identify key trends/metrics
  • Brief discussion on need for funding diversity and sustainability & how to approach/target/monitor/measure

Session 3: Industry Specific Knowledge

Session content:

  • ACE grant and Smart and Skilled funds – information overview and Q&A
  • Funding opportunities and diversification of income – panel style Q&A and discussions on a range of topics:
    • Sources of funding from government and non-government funding/granting bodies
    • Broader income diversification experiences, risks and opportunities

Session 4: Board Effectiveness and Culture

Session content:

Includes Q&A sessions with experienced directors sharing learnings and experiences on:

Board recruitment/composition:

  • Director induction, onboarding and ongoing education essentials
  • Skills, diversity and inclusion best practices
  • Board recruitment, composition, succession planning and tenure
  • Facilitating due diligence for directors considering joining your Board

CEO and Board relationships:

    • Role of Chair in addressing/resolving conflict in the boardroom
    • CEO/Board relationships, open & respectful conversations
    • CEO performance management, development & succession
    • Critical conversations: asking tough questions and respectfully challenging the CEO
    • Board evaluation/score cards
    • Board positive interactions & processes

Session 5: Advanced Governance, Strategy and Risk Management

Session content:

  • Cyber security risk, principles, data protection and privacy best practices
  • Board and leadership role in strategic planning and ongoing monitoring of strategy
  • Decision making models
  • Risk management models, achieving balance and not stifling growth/innovation
  • Achieving balance between forward/backward and between long-term/short-term thinking

The Strengthening Governance Project and these online sessions have been made possible through NSW Department of Education and Training Teaching and Leadership Program Funding.