The complex questions surrounding what board members do, what staff members do, and how they relate to one another are among the most important and challenging issues of nonprofit governance. How do board and staff build a governance partnership that reflects:

• the unique dynamics of the organization
• the leadership capacities of the people involved
• the organization's culture, age, and maturity

In a controlled environment, without the pressure of time and the complications of human nature, it is easy to describe the ideal theory of the working relationship between board and staff:

• the board makes policy, and the staff administers it
• the board sets the course, and the staff negotiates transit

What could be clearer or simpler? As experience proves, it isn't simple--but it is manageable, as this article explains.