ABSTRACT
Defining the governance roles and responsibilities of the board, individual board members, the board chair and paid staff is important to enable appropriate decision-making to take place within an organization and to ensure accountability. This chapter explores the role of the board and the individuals involved in governing roles through an examination of reported research on board roles, governance guidelines and examples from nonprofit sport organizations. It examines the role of nonprofit sport organization boards and how board roles and responsibilities are allocated within these organizations.
The chapter is presented in four parts. First, the roles of nonprofit boards and widely prescribed board member and paid staff roles within the context of nonprofit organizations are reviewed. Second, the body of published research on the role of the nonprofit boards and board members is examined. Third, the recommended governance roles of nonprofit sport organizations are examined through a review of the limited amount of research on the role of nonprofit sport organization boards together with examples of how these roles are conducted. Finally, the prescribed roles for individuals involved in nonprofit sport organizations are explored along with the debate over the allocation of portfolio responsibilities within boards.
