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Board Roles & Responsibilities

Board members should follow these guidelines for effective meetings.

  • To prepare for Board meetings, Board members will read the packet, ask for director's report clarification in advance, prepare committee reports, and bring communications to the meeting.
  • Minutes will reflect only basic information about what was discussed and decisions that were made.

Executive Director's role

  • Manage the budget set by Board and membership.
  • Manage procedures and day-to-day operations of SWAN.
  • Responsible for allocation of staff time and resources.
  • Collaborate with the Board on strategic planning.
  • Implement strategic priorities and tactics.
  • Manage direct member communication with regard to SWAN operations and policy implementation.
  • Possesses authority to respond to operational, priority, and procedural issues.

Board Members’ roles

  • Gather input from members through formal and informal channels, and bring input back to the Board when relevant.
  • Support the decisions of the Board when communicating with members.
  • Communicate information to members.
  • Set SWAN policies for implementation by the Executive Director.
  • Create annual budget and capital plan for member approval.
  • Responsible for long-range and strategic planning, with input from members, staff, and the Executive Director.
  • Conduct an annual performance review of the Executive Director.
  • Participate in hiring the Executive Director.

Norms for board effectiveness

  • The Board will set meeting ground rules for effective communication.
  • The Board President will be responsible for facilitating effective discussions, making sure to provide an opportunity to hear all opinions without rehashing arguments.
  • Board members will strive to make sure their comments contribute to moving the discussion forward.
  • When setting the Board meeting agendas, decision items will be moved earlier in the agenda.
  • Meeting times or time ranges will be added to keep discussion on track.