It’s an open secret in our sector. Behind closed doors, often protected by NDAs, countless charity workers are paid off after concerns have been raised about their performance or behaviour. Why do we keep paying them off instead of managing them out through a formal process? And what cost is this to our sector’s finances and wider reputation?

If Trustees must be able to show that these payments are in the charity’s best interests, why do we keep getting to this point, and why aren’t we investing more in the management practices that could prevent it?

This episode explores why this is happening, what gets in the way of dealing with poor performance earlier, and what charities can do to manage performance long before they have to worry about calling in the lawyers.

Today we speak with Paul Seath, a partner at Bates Wells specialising in charity employment matters, Steph Edusai, the CEO of St Oswald’s Hospice, and Paul McKenzie, a leadership and fundraising consultant. We examine why so many poor performers end up being paid off, and what we can all do to reduce the risk and enhance performance for everyone.

Most Trustees join charity Boards with good intentions. Yet poor Trustee behaviour is one of the most common frustrations faced by charity leaders, fellow Trustees and Boards. Is it something about our sector is it the charity structure itself that is the problem?

This episode explores why it is that there are so many examples of Trustees behaving badly, and we examine why this is so, and what can be done about it

Today we speak with Mary-Ann Ochota, a Trustee who found herself facing an impossible governance situation, Penny Wilson, governance consultant, trainer and former CEO of Getting on Board, and Dr Vidya Sukumara Panicker, Senior Lecturer at Loughborough University whose research explores trustee skills, governance and Board effectiveness in charities…. Together, they examine why Trustees behave badly, what sits behind poor governance behaviour, and whether some of the sector's structures are inadvertently creating the conditions for failure.

Founder’s syndrome is a recognised problem in our sector, but there is more to the story. Why is it so prevalent? What can be done? And what should founders do if they recognise some of these behaviours in themselves? This episode examines how control, identity and power can shift founders from driving impact to creating risk…or worse, and how those dynamics are often enabled rather than challenged.

The discussion brings together Susanna Kislenko, an academic specialising in founder leadership and founder’s syndrome, Carla Gill, a former founder now working with others through transition, and Mona Vadher and Nick Moore, two Interims for Impact associates who, as interim CEOs, who have seen first-hand the impact these situations can have on organisations, culture and governance. Together, they explore what sits beneath the label of founder’s syndrome and what needs to happen before the consequences become systemic.