Module 2. Governance and running a small organisation

The smallest structure that lets you make good decisions and be taken seriously: boards, roles, people and policies.

Guiding question

What is the smallest structure that lets you make good decisions and be taken seriously?

Work through this module before the session (about 45 minutes) and bring your real documents to the live session.

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Build a think tank: the Who? questions
School for Thinktankers background notes: Strategic governance and management
Setting up a think tank: step by step — Find a leader (or leaders); People, people, people; Find your most appropriate governance arrangement; Don’t forget 3 key lists

When you finish the module, take the five-question quiz in Google Classroom (about 10 minutes). It is marked automatically.

Wednesday 28 October, 15:00–17:00 CET
Facilitated by Enrique Mendizabal

Zoom link

Boards for small organisations: four or five members is usually right. Choose them for what they add — think tank experience, finance, law, communications, access to funders — not just for their name. If you are the subject expert, you need what you are missing, not more subject experts.
Separating the three jobs: strategic oversight, management and doing the work. In founder-led organisations, these sit with the same two or three people; the session looks at how to start pulling them apart without adding cost.
People: staffing models when you cannot afford staff: associates, young researchers, partnerships, consultancy alongside public-good work. A formal research associate category shows capacity and gives credibility without payroll.
Policies: write the ones you are required to have or genuinely need. We go through the short list that matters at this size.
Deciding what to take on: simple rules for accepting or declining work, so that requests do not quietly set your agenda.

A board and roles map: your governing group against six skill areas, two named gaps, and what you will do about them.

Submit your task in Google Classroom within a week of the session (45–60 minutes). The facilitator will comment on it there.

The recording and slides of the live session will be posted here after the session.

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