The HGSA Board of Directors is the decision making body of the company.
To contact the Board, please send email to [email protected]
Roles and responsibilities of the Board
The Role of the Board
The board is ultimately responsible for ensuring that HGSA achieves its objectives ethically, responsibly and within its legislative and regulatory obligations. Accordingly, the board is accountable to members of the company for the attainment of HGSA's vision and mission, and for ensuring the ongoing sustainability of the organisation.
The board does this through the following key functions:
• setting and monitoring the culture or ‘tone at the top’ for the organisation
• setting the overall strategic direction and policies of HGSA and monitoring the Chief Executive Officer’s and management’s implementation of that strategy
• monitoring HGSA’s operational and financial performance including the approval of annual budgets and verifying annual financial statements
• monitoring HGSA’s compliance with legal and regulatory obligations
• ensuring that effective audit and risk management systems are in place to protect HGSA’s assets and to minimize the possibility of HGSA operating beyond acceptable risk parameters
• selecting and appointing the CEO, determining their conditions of service, and monitoring their performance against established performance objectives
• accounting to members and other key stakeholders for HGSA’s performance, and
• representing HGSA in formal interactions with key stakeholders and ensuring that the good reputation of HGSA is upheld.
The board’s role is to govern rather than manage HGSA. The board delegates to the CEO responsibility for managing the day-to-day operations of HGSA, and in this regard sets specific limits of authority within which the CEO can act without reference to the board.
Board Principles for Operation / Values
The board has agreed that, it will govern with an emphasis on:
• outward vision rather than inward concern
• encouragement of diversity of opinions and views
• strategic leadership rather than administrative detail
• collective rather than individual decisions
• pro-activity rather than reactivity
• future rather than present focus, and
• a clear distinction between board and CEO roles.
The Role of Directors
Directors are individually responsible for ensuring that the board fulfils its role as set out in this charter. This requires directors to:
• contribute to setting the culture and strategic direction of HGSA
• ensure achievement of the functions of HGSA in a proper, effective and efficient way
• demonstrate and promote high standards of corporate governance
• monitor the performance of HGSA in the areas of finance, compliance and risk management
• participate in the appointment of the CEO and the regular monitoring of the CEO’s performance
• account to the company’s members for the company’s performance, and
• undertake a representative role for HGSA as required.
Directors have no individual authority to be involved in the day-to-day management of HGSA unless the board has specifically delegated that task to an individual director.
The Role of the President
The primary role of the President is to ensure the efficient and effective operation of the board. While legally the President doesn’t have any additional responsibilities or powers to that of any other director on the board, the President plays an important role in:
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leading the board and facilitating constructive contributions by all directors
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ensuring the board functions effectively and efficiently as a whole in discharging its responsibilities
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establishing an effective working relationship with the CEO, and facilitating a good working relationship between the board and CEO
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establishing an effective working relationship with members and key stakeholders
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chairing board meetings and ensuring the effectiveness of those meetings
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guiding the on-going professional development and performance reviews of the board and directors, and
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undertaking a high level representative role for HGSA.