Directors’ Manual
This manual is crafted, approved, and used by the board of directors. Responsibility for its creation and maintenance rests with the board. The manual is used by the board to help directors meet their responsibilities as governors of the NPO.
It includes policies related to how the board manages itself and how it governs the organization for which it is responsible. Given that these responsibilities are generally similar across the NPO spectrum, the content and structure of the Director’s Manual are remarkably similar from one organization to another. The manual will generally contain a number of sections, such as:
- History of the organization
- Mission statement, current issues, and strategic plan
- Governance and management philosophy
- Board policies
- Committee operations
- Legal documents
- Volunteer organization chart and contact list
- Staff organization chart and contact list
- Terms of reference of board committees and task forces
- Board minutes