Just under three in five charity leaders say they have experienced ‘challenging board behaviour’, a survey has revealed.

More than 230 chairs, vice chairs, chief executives and trustees were surveyed by nfpResearch for sector leadership bodies Acevo and the Association of Chairs.

Around one in five chief executives and one in 15 chairs said that incidents of challenging behaviour, such as “individuals exerting disproportionate influence”, happen often.

Those newest to their charity leadership role are “most exposed”, the survey found, with more than seven in ten of those in post under a year experiencing challenging behaviour.

Despite the prevalence of problematic behaviour more than seven in ten CEOs and almost nine in ten chairs say they are confident they could manage problems with challenging or difficult board behaviour.

One respondent said that “the person creating the issue was removed” after their “unprofessional behaviour” over three years “nearly broke the board”.

Another said that challenging behaviour from one trustee “required some offline conversations to help them understand the perspective of other board members”.

The survey also highlights the impact on staff of challenging board room behaviour, with another respondents saying it “undermined the ability for staff to do their work and to feel confident in their ability to communicate with trustees”.

Diversity and skills issues

Half of respondents say they are “dissatisfied with diversity and skills on boards” and only three in five say that their charity’s trustees “come to meetings prepared”.

Only one in four charities have appraisals of their chairs.

Among recommendations made is for the UK’s Charity Commissions to “actively promote ways to manage challenging behaviour and improve board diversity”.

Charities are also urged to develop board diversity and skills by focusing on “recruitment of trustees for diversity of experience, background, skill and thought”.

Trustees skills audits should be used to “identify areas of weakness and areas of improvement” and trustee induction needs to improve.

CEO and chair relationship

Seven in ten charity CEOs described their relationship with their chairs as strong, the survey also found. Among chiars more than four in five said the same about their relationship with CEOs.

"The CEO–chair relationship plays a critical role in setting that tone," said ACEVO chief executive Jane Ide.

"Where there is space for honest reflection, for raising concerns early and for testing assumptions, the rest of the board is more likely to follow.

"Where that space is limited, challenge can become muted and important issues can go unspoken."

Earlier this week Charity Commission chair Julia Unwin used her inaugural speech to criticise the focus of charity boards using their personal contacts to recruit trustees and warned that only 6% are appointed after responding to a job advert.

This “prevents people contributing, it narrows the mind sets of boards, and it deprives vital organisation of the best, independent engagement that a truly diverse board offers.”

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