“CEO oversight? Evaluation? Strategy? No, we don’t do that. But if you want a fundraising gala, I’m your guy!”

That’s how a colleague once heard another board chair describe his own role, and the role of the board he led.

That remark is not representative of most nonprofit boards, but it is one small example of an undeniable fact: Not every board performs at their best, or even necessarily understands what great board performance means. Boards generally do amazing and vital work with skill and dedication, but new research suggests that the sector’s boards could be doing even better.

Leading Edge, the organization of which I am the board chair, recently released a new report on how CEOs perceive their boards, with data from 300+ nonprofits. (Our work focuses on Jewish communal organizations, but these findings are instructive for the whole nonprofit sector.) And let’s start with the good news: Boards are providing tremendous value. Four out of five CEOs agree that their boards make a positive impact on the leader (81 percent) and the organization (79 percent). Most CEOs say their boards provide support and thought partnership to the CEO, communicate well, respond well to crises, and fiscally oversee the organization with responsibility and care.

But many CEOs also report performance issues.

Here are four examples of vital elements of board performance in which our data indicates many boards could improve. These are principles of board governance that, whether your board is high-performing or not, are worth keeping in mind.

1. Great boards understand their roles and responsibilities. This is so basic that it sounds silly to say, but to do a job well you have to understand it. Yet understanding the board’s role and responsibilities is a surprisingly common struggle.

2. Great boards hold themselves accountable. Even many boards who understand their roles still aren’t holding themselves accountable for fulfilling them.

3. Great boards invest time and effort building their culture. A culture of open communication, trust, belonging, alignment, and excellence helps groups perform at their best, and that’s as true of boards as it is of professional teams. The most common growth opportunity for board culture is building trust and connection.

4. Great boards support and empower their board chairs. CEOs overwhelmingly agree that board chairs play a vital role, providing CEOs with thought partnership, running effective meetings, and serving as the public face of the board. But strong board chairs are also critical for succeeding at the principles above. Who is best positioned to regularly remind the board of their roles and responsibilities, and help create accountability structures? Who is best positioned to shape the board’s culture and schedule time for building trust and connection? In both cases, it’s the board chair.

Read the full article about better board performance by Daryl Messinger at The Center for Effective Philanthropy.