A good board is not seen or heard, except within the walls of the club. The GM is the mouthpiece of the organisation and should be the central point of contact for all aspects of the day to day running of the club. Obviously the coach plays an important supporting role.
They provide guidance, approve strategic plans and leave the execution of the plans to the GM. They perform a governance role; providing the checks and balances to ensure that we aren't in hot water with the NRL, HBG or the tax man. The roles can be competently performed by males or females with or without knowledge of the the game itself.
A high performing board on the other hand is well connected and will assist in bringing in $ (sponsorship) and the community for support. They will know their way around the corporate world and can speack to the right people to influence key decision makers (politicians, Mayors etc). The types we need don't necessesarily need to be footy heads but should have a passion for the club and the game.
The key factors aren't gender based, or any other discriminatory measure for that matter, they are along the lines of:
- Leadership,
- Integrity, and
- Moral Courage.
I would add that diversity across the board membership would be favourable so you could cover the broad spectrum of support required. I'm not talking DEI type diversity I'm talking about = political connection, community connection, NRL connection, business connection etc. Get that balance right and we are on the way. The skills matrix is a good start, getting an external recruitment agency to vet candidates is another.
Let the process run and see who it throws up - then it will be time to see if we remain a nepotistic organisation or have taken a bis step towards achieving our strategic goal of becomming a top NRL club.