Evaluating and Improving Board Committees

By Barry S. Bader and Elaine Zablock

Despite the importance of committees, few boards engage in a regular and focused evaluation of their working parts. Although board self-assessment questionnaires often include general questions about committees, they usually donʼt probe each specific committee to evaluate and carry out ongoing improvements in responsibilities, size, makeup, meeting frequency, agendas, information, and relationships with management.

In this issue, Great Boards takes a fresh look at committees and how to make them tools of great governance. We examine the most common committees used by hospitals and health systems by looking at their responsibilities and then recommending self assessment questions.

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