Tired of experts? The charity sector is not for you.

Earlier today, a charity Trustee I know said to me ‘we want to bring in someone with no experience or knowledge of the sector’. Thankfully I lack a brick wall in my office or I may have found myself pounding …

Navigating the tricky path of charity CEO supervision

How do you supervise the leader of a charity effectively? If you’re a CEO or a Chair, chances are you’ve had to find your way along this challenging path. Many Boards and CEOs struggle with getting this right. Of course, …

Shannon Trust Interim Leadership Case Study

It was an unusual start to an interim role. Far from the ordinary meet and greet with the team, I found myself travelling up to Leamington Spa on 19 March 2020 to have coffee with the Chair on my first …

Managing your stress in a charity role

I was running a strategic planning course recently and invited everyone to introduce themselves. One attendee described the organisation she chaired, which was a place for relaxing, stress-free, simple holidays. The entire room of stressed-out, overworked and tired charity staff …

In Celebration of Charity Chairs

No, I don’t really mean the thing you sit on. I mean the person who leads the Board and oversees and supports the CEO. I’ve worked with a number of Charity Chairs in my time – yes, a minority who …

Early warning signs of a failing Trustee Board

Working with many small-to-medium charities across the country, I meet many inspiring Trustees who are doing amazing work, often in challenging situations. I also come across many charities where things have gone badly wrong. This may be directly connected to …

Employing Trustees – navigating the minefield

So… can a Trustee become an employee of a charity? The answer, like so many things in the charity world, is not a simple one. A recent conversation with a charity Trustee revealed that they thought Trustees could become employees …