Dr Sonia Shimeld presented her paper “Governance and Accountability in Not-for-Profit Organisations” at the 16th International Business Research Conference in Dubai, in April 2012.
The paper, co-authored by Professor Gary O’Donovan, investigated how board members and CEOs of not-for-profit sporting organisations perceived governance and related governance structures in their organisations.
Unlike for-profit organisations, formal financial accountability was not the dominant form of accountability. Accountability relating to the organisations’ mission was seen as the main driver behind governance structures. While this view of accountability explained recruitment and board operations, it was often at odds with what the literature described as “good governance”.