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The number one responsibility of any board—for-profit or nonprofit—is management of the senior executive. Dozens of governance books drive this point home. Yet, when we talk with nonprofit leaders, it's simply not their experience. Nearly half (46 percent) of the 214 CEOs responding to a recent Bridgespan Group survey reported getting little or no help from their boards when first taking on the position. As one executive director puts it, "The board essentially said, 'We're glad you're here.