The Role and Impact of Chairs of Nonprofit Organization Boards of Directors: an Exploratory Study

Most research on nonprofit boards has tended to focus on the board as a whole and its role vis a vis the organization’s management. Comparatively little empirical attention has been paid to the role and impact of board chairs. This paper reports on a pilot study exploring the differences between highly effective and highly ineffective chairs as perceived by experienced Executive Directors and board members in a small sample of nonprofit organizations in Seattle WA and Victoria BC. The paper presents a conceptual framework for studying chair behavior, its impact and its determinants. Preliminary findings from this exploratory research suggest that there is considerable communality in the perceived qualities of very effective chairs and their opposites. Findings and future research are discussed.