Good Governance Handbook - HQIP

6. Behaviours, Systems and Supports
The Board is not simply a group of individuals. It needs to work together if not as a
team as a group which is clear about roles and relationships. It will need support from
individuals and systems which provide information, analysis, assurance and
identification of risk.
6.1 Behaviours
From outside the NHS the report on corporate governance in financial institutions
prepared by Sir David Walker, 33 said “principal deficiencies in… boards related much
more to patterns of behaviour than to organisation.”
Good board governance cannot be legislated for but can be built over time.
According to Sonnenfeld, 34 the ‘best bets’ for success are:
• A climate of trust and candour in which important information is shared with
all board members and provided early enough for them to digest and
understand.
• A climate in which dissent is not seen as disloyalty and in which mavericks and
dissenters are not punished.
• A fluid portfolio of roles for directors so individuals are not typecast into rigid
positions on the board.
• Individual accountability with directors given tasks that require them to
inform the rest of the board about issues facing the organisation.
• Regular evaluation of board performance.
The publication identified four characteristics of effective boards:
• A focus on strategic decision-making.
• Board members who trust each other and act cohesively / behave corporately.
• Constructive challenge by board members of each other.
• Effective chairs who ensure meetings have clear and effective processes.
• Attempts at Improving Board Effectiveness.
Behaviours determine the actions of the organisation and are a vital element of good
governance. Some behaviours are expected and prescribed, others reflect experience,
styles and etiquettes adopted or learnt.
6.2 Good Governance Standard for Public Services
In January 2005, an Independent Commission established by the Chartered Institute
of Public Finance and Accountancy ( CIPFA) and the Office for Public Management
(OPM), under the Chairmanship of Sir Alan Langlands, published its Good Governance
Standard for Public Services. 35 The standard consists of six principles.
33 FRC, The Walker Review of Corporate Governance of UK Banking Industry, 2009
34 Harvard Business Review, What makes great boards great? September 2002
35 www.cipfa.org.uk/pt/download/governance_standard.pdf
www.good-governance.org.uk 23