keynote presentation given in Sept 2009 as part of Dept of Health's national 'right to request' programme

1. Governance in Social
Enterprise
. . . in 20 m inute s!
Adrian Ashton
www.adrianashton.co.uk

2. But first some thanks...

3. In less than 20 minutes I'll cover a
subject that...
...has over 39,900,000 hits on google
... has over a dozen different codes &
standards
Adrian Ashton

4. NOT another diagram
Adrian Ashton

5. - Why bother spending time on this?
- What influences it?
- How do you make it work?
- How do you involve people?
- How do you pay for it?
Adrian Ashton

6. How do you spell governance?
P – Power
A - Accountability
R - Relationships
Adrian Ashton

7. Where can it go wrong?
Minority in charge
– less people become involved as they perceive
'usual suspects' running the show
'Mission drift'
– people get less involved because they become
disillusioned
Illegal actions...
- most corporate failures in sector attributed to
governance failings
Adrian Ashton

8. What influences it? - internal
- Legal form (x13)
powers of regulator (x4)
- Board members
- Staff
- Members
Adrian Ashton

9. What influences it? - external
- Where the money comes from
- Legislation
- Expectations of others
Adrian Ashton

10. How to do 'good governance'?
- Comprehensive induction for ALL
- Regular reviews and reflection
- Looking at how others do it
Adrian Ashton

11. Involving people in governance
- Opportunities at ALL levels
- Support (training, expenses,
feedback)
- Transparency and openness at each
level
Adrian Ashton

12. Does it all sound too expensive?
- Governance is a legal requirement
- Governance can make or break an
enterprise
- It can and should be budgeted!
Adrian Ashton

13. What now?
- Navel gazing
- Talk to each other
- Seek support
Keep thinking about it!
Adrian Ashton

14. The (m y) 2 golden rules:
1. NEVER choose your legal form
because of someone else
2. ALWAYS keep thinking about
your P,A,R.
Adrian Ashton