A Guide to the Carver Policy Governance® Guide Series

The Policy Governance Model and the Role of the Board Member outlines a vision for excellence in board leadership. It gives board members a broad understanding of the concepts and principles that are at the very heart of Carver's innovative model. This guide details members' main tasks and presents the guidelines needed to transform a board into an effective group that leads powerfully, instills vision, empowers others, and demands accountability.

Ends and the Ownership helps boards distinguish between what an organization is for and what it does—a basic feature of the groundbreaking Policy Governance model. With a rigorous and unique definition of "ends" versus "means," the model rids the board of trivia, streamlines board work, and optimally links to executive action. This guide also anchors each organization in a legitimacy base—called the ownership—and builds the board's moral authority upon that base.

The Governance of Financial Management presents a values-based approach to the issues of financial accountability. It reveals how a board can effectively govern an organization's financial planning by controlling budget values rather than budget numbers. The guide also addresses board control over and scrutiny of actual financial conditions as they develop during the year. The board is helped to fulfill fiduciary responsibility without being overwhelmed by details.

Adjacent Leadership Roles: CGO and CEO examines the leadership roles needed in the boardroom and the executive suite. Chairing the board and managing the organization are described as two important but distinct roles, both accountable to the board. Because the chairing role is referred to by various titles, Policy Governance focuses on the function of the "chief governance officer," rather than the title. This guide shows how a board can delegate powerfully and safely to its CEO, as well as how board, CGO, and CEO jobs can be designed in optimal relationship to each other.

Evaluating CEO and Board Performance offers board members a criteria-focused approach to continual, rigorous, and fair assessment of performance, both of the board and of the organization. This guide shows how the board can focus on just the data it needs rather than being either engulfed in information or ignorant of what is going on. Evaluation is explained as an ongoing, integral part of governing rather than an infrequent afterthought.

Implementing Policy Governance and Staying on Track shows boards how they can apply principles described in the other guides. This guide cuts across various aspects of the Policy Governance model and challenges board members not only to move from concepts to practice, but to also maintain their skill through continued retraining and practical exercises.

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