Board of Directors (BOD) members are the fiduciaries who steer the organization towards a sustainable future by adopting sound, ethical, and legal governance and financial management policies, as well as by making sure the International Probiotics Association (IPA) has adequate resources to advance its mission.
Did you know?
The IPA board members serve as volunteers without any compensation.
Arguably the most important policy for a board to adopt is a policy addressing conflicts of interest. Just as for any corporation, the BOD has three primary legal duties known as the “duty of care,” “duty of loyalty,” and “duty of obedience.”
Duty of Care: Take care of the IPA by ensuring prudent use of all assets, including people and good will;
Duty of Loyalty: Ensure that the IPA’s activities and transactions are, first and foremost, advancing its mission; recognize and disclose conflicts of interest; make decisions that are in the best interest of the IPA, not in the best interest of individual board members (or any other individual or for-profit entity).
Duty of Obedience: Ensure that the IPA obeys applicable laws and regulations; follows its own bylaws; and that the IPA adheres to its stated mission.
Board members have an important role as advocates to help advance the IPA’s mission: Promote the safe and efficacious use of probiotics around the world.
Reference: https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/tools-resources/board-roles-and-responsibilities