Boards That Make a Difference (J-B Carver Board Governance Series) (Hardcover)

by John Carver (Author) "The vision I have for boards aims for far higher quality in the boardroom than has been common..." (more)
Key Phrases: governance process, nonprofit world, servant leadership, Policy Governance, San Francisco, John Carver (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"John Carver is a revolutionary of the very best kind. Carver's Policy Governance model has provided the means for trustees to live out Greenleaf's challenge to boards to act as both servant and leader."
--Larry C. Spears, CEO, The Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership; editor, Reflections on Leadership, Insights on Leadership, Servant Leadership, The Power of Servant Leadership; co-editor, Practicing Servant Leadership and Focus on Leadership

"It took an inspired social scientist to record and describe the fundamental principles of [the Policy Governance] model, which provides deep insight into the role of the Board in the modern corporation."
--Jeremy Booker, vice president corporate governance, British Petroleum, London

"Dr. Carver’s governance model has been the key in empowering the State Bar of California Board of Governors to focus on policy that would help our judicial system."
--Andrew J. Guilford, 1999-2000 president, State Bar of California

"An indispensable guidebook to leadership excellence."
--George Weber, executive director, Canadian Dental Association, Ottawa; former secretary general, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva

"Boards That Make a Difference explicates the model, which is simple, powerful and, above all, successful."
—W. H. Hann, former executive director, Association of Independent Schools of Western Australia

"This book's sound premises regarding proper role delineation and its practical advice provide an invaluable resource."
--Dr. John R. Seffrin, CEO, American Cancer Society, Atlanta

"Dr. Carver offers a visionary yet practical approach to governance design."
--Adalberto Palma Gómez, senior partner, Aperture S.C.; former director, Institute for the Protection of Bank Savings; chairman, Center for Excellence in Corporate Governance, Mexico City

"Policy Governance gives governing bodies and CEOs a clear insight into their mutual relationship and their distinct responsibilities."
--Jacques Gerards, CEO, Dutch Association of Governors in Health Care, The Netherlands

Product Description
In this revised and updated third edition, Carver continues to debunk the entrenched beliefs and habits that hobble boards and to replace them with his innovative approach to effective governance. This proven model offers an empowering and fundamental redesign of the board role and emphasizes values, vision, empowerment of both the board and staff, and strategic ability to lead leaders. Policy Governance gives board members and staff a new approach to board job design, board-staff relationships, the role of the chief executive, performance monitoring, and virtually every aspect of the board-management relationship.  This latest edition has been updated and expanded to include explanatory diagrams that have been used by thousands of Carver’s seminar participants. It also contains illustrative examples of Policy Governance model policies that have been created by real-world organizations. In addition, this third edition of Boards That Make a Difference includes a new chapter on model criticisms and the challenges of governance research.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 3 edition (February 24, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787976164
• ISBN-13: 978-0787976163
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #72,685 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 2 in The Carver Board Governance Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Boards that make a difference, July 9, 2007

By	Brigitte A. Crawford "BoardCEO" (Auburn, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Not the most engrossing read, but for anyone serving on a board, it is a great resource.

5.0 out of 5 stars No Nonsense Approach to Governance, November 18, 2008

By	Michael Mcmahon "AUSD Board Member" (Alameda, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

John Carver in a straight forward manner develops a strong case for changing the governance model for all boards - non-profit, public and private. His years of experiences and latest edition incorporates over 20 years of hands on experience with why his model can work for boards. Management has evolved significantly over the past 100 years and it is time that governance of organizations begin to evolve. John's work will give you the opportunity to examine your current board practices and give you the opportunity to dream about what is possible.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars incredibly useful, August 3, 2007

By	Love Meher Baba "Baba Khodaiji" (Bronxville, NY) - See all my reviews

Carver describes how to avoid common Board mistakes and actually create the Board in a leadership role. It seems so obvious now that I read it... but I had to read it to realize what the problems were with my previous and current Board experience.

This book is tailored to answer questions about every size of Board, so read it! It's a bit dense in its language, but useful to all of us.