The Groundwork Check – CorpIQ.com.au

How clear is it what your board and its committees are responsible for?

We have current charters and people work to them

Charters exist, but nobody has looked at them in years

Some committees have terms of reference, some don't

I wouldn't know where to find them

What state are your governance instruments in (policies, procedures, standards)?

Current, easy to find, and people actually use them

Mostly fine, a handful are overdue for review

There are too many and a lot are out of date

We're not entirely sure what we have

When a decision comes up, is it clear whether it goes to the board or the executive?

Yes, our delegations and corporate governance framework is clear and we follow it

We have some documents that aim to describe it, however it's not very clear and sometimes we still debate it

We work it out case by case

Things reach the board that shouldn't, and the reverse

How does risk actually work in your organisation?

Clear risk framework and up to date risk registers

Out of date framework, and risk registers we update when we need to report to board or executive

We may have a risk framework, and I think we did a risk register once

What is a risk framework?

Could you list every policy, charter, and framework you have, and when each was last reviewed?

Yes, within the hour

Yes, but it would take a day of digging

Partly

No

What do your board papers look like?

Consistent format, clear recommendation, right length and follows the board reporting schedule

Generally follows the board reporting schedule but papers can be a bit long and unclear

Whatever the author decides that month

We mostly present verbally

Do your managers know what's expected of them at their level?

Yes, we have a capability framework and use it

Position descriptions cover it, roughly

Position descriptions are old or generic

No, and it shows when someone steps up

How do you know you're meeting your compliance obligations?

Compliance calendar, named owners, tracked

Someone keeps an eye on it

We'd struggle to list our obligations

We find out when something goes wrong

Which best describes your organisation?

Disability services

Health or wellbeing

Education or childcare

Community or other not-for-profit

Government or public sector

Something else

And your role?

CEO or executive

Manager with governance in my remit

The only person doing this work

Board or committee member

Consultant or adviser

Your Groundwork Check result

Based on what you told us about your organisation.

Your score out of 24

Starting from scratch

Most of the basic governance instruments either don't exist or can't be found. That's more common than you'd think in organisations your size, and it's fixable in a sensible order rather than all at once.

Patchy foundations

Some things are in place and others aren't, which usually means the gaps only surface under pressure. The priority is closing the structural holes before adding anything new.

Working, with gaps

The core is there and mostly functioning. What's left is the difference between governance that satisfies an auditor and governance that actually helps you run the place.

Solid, refining

You're ahead of most organisations your size. The remaining work is depth and consistency rather than construction.

Where you sit, stage by stage

Foundations (out of 9)

Operating rhythm (out of 9)

Capability (out of 3)

Assurance (out of 3)

Where to start

These are the areas you scored lowest on.

Committee mandates

Committees without current terms of reference either duplicate the board's work or quietly leave gaps nobody owns.

Groundwork kit: Board and committee charter kit

Policy framework

A policy set nobody trusts gets ignored, and an ignored policy is worse than no policy when something goes wrong.

Groundwork kit: Policy framework and review cycle kit

Decision rights

Unclear decision rights slow everything down and put the board in the position of either rubber-stamping or second-guessing.

Groundwork kit: Board versus executive decision matrix kit

Risk management

A register that only moves before board meetings is a compliance artefact, not a management tool.

Groundwork kit: Risk framework and register kit

Instrument register

If you can't see what exists, you can't tell what's missing, and neither can your board or your auditor.

Groundwork kit: Governance instrument register kit

Board reporting

Inconsistent papers make directors work harder than they should to find the decision they're being asked to make.

Groundwork kit: Board reporting kit

Leadership capability

Without a stated standard, promotion becomes guesswork and succession planning has nothing to plan against.

Groundwork kit: Leadership capability framework kit

Compliance assurance

Finding out an obligation exists because you've missed it is the most expensive way to learn.

Groundwork kit: Compliance calendar kit

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The Groundwork Check is a self-assessment tool, not an audit, and it is not legal or professional advice. Results reflect what you told us about your organisation.