But not only is good governance integral to our legal duties when we join a Board or Committee – the benefits to our organisations of having good governance practices in place are also wide-ranging and occur on a number of levels.

Firstly, organisations function so much better when they are governed well.
When the governance team is doing their job properly, their organisation is more likely to achieve its purposes and objectives, to deliver on its strategic priorities, and to create great impact in the area of focus where it works.
Well-governed organisations also have their finger on the pulse of the organisation’s financial position. They are constantly reviewing income, expenditure, budgets and cashflows, and making good strategic decisions about how to spend the organisation’s financial resources to best effect for their beneficiaries.
They also keep a constant eye on the bottom line and ensure that their organisation avoids activities that might jeopardise its solvency.
You know that old saying: ‘We don’t plan to fail, we fail to plan’? Well organisations that are well-governed tend to plan more effectively too, which in turn leads to them doing a better job in terms of their overall effectiveness and efficiency as well.
Well-governed organisations have a focus on operating appropriately within the law and meeting their compliance requirements, and they generally do a better job of managing their risks – both at an operational and a strategic level.
And well-governed organisations usually develop a reputation as a sound organisation that is accountable and trustworthy. Peak bodies will be more confident that the organisation is operating properly, funders can be more confident in the financial management of the organisation, and patrons can be confident that their involvement will not tarnish their good reputation.
All of which, in turn, sees organisations viewed more favourably when seeking funds, supports and other resources.

So from the perspective of the organisation itself, there are many, many benefits to being well-governed.

Secondly, the people who are affected by the work of the organisation will get better outcomes when the organisation is well-governed and functioning effectively.
Whether your organisation’s beneficiaries are members or customers or clients or service users (or a combination of those), they will all get better services and supports from an organisation that is being properly stewarded by the governing body.
Equally, staff (and, in that, I include volunteers, as they are effectively our ‘unpaid staff’), are all going to better informed, trained, developed, supported, and kept safe, within a well-governed organisation.

Thirdly, those individuals (often volunteers themselves) who put their hands up to join our Boards and Management Committees have a better experience and become individually more effective within a well-governed organisation.
They can build appropriate skills and knowledge and gain great experience from their time with a well-governed organisation, making them more confident and better at fulfilling their roles – including with other organisations in the future…given it is often the same people who put their hand up for governance roles time and time again, their skills will be shared with and benefit other organisations over time.

Then last but by no means least, the broader community as a whole benefits from lots of well-governed organisations within our society. And those benefits ripple out from the local level to regional, state and national (even international!) levels.
With well-functioning organisations, our communities are more vibrant, people enjoy the opportunities and choices of being involved with a wider range organisations, and we can all connect and develop relationships with like-minded others which enriches everyone’s lives.
In this way, improving the governance practice of our organisations we will see the knock-on effects of strengthening the community from within – communities develop and social capital is built.
It really is a case of ‘strengthening communities, one organisation at a time!

Read more about specialist Megan Buntine here.