To paraphrase Tolstoy’s famous quote about families: all happy boards are alike; each unhappy board is unhappy in its own way.
Boards of directors, by law, hold nonprofits accountable to the broader community through what are broadly described as “duties of loyalty and care”. While boards of directors do vital work (hiring executive directors, holding fiduciary responsibility, setting strategic direction for the organization, etc.), not all boards function smoothly. There is often a degree of dissonance between the vital role of boards of directors and their actual practice.
Susan Fish, Charity Village