An engaging course on co-operative governance, as democratic, people-centred, and transformational. Designed for seasoned decision-makers and emerging leaders from any sector or type of co-operative, all will benefit from this knowledge-rich course. This participatory education experience focuses on enhancing your knowledge and building your network.
Governance is core to all co-operatives, relevant to all members, and applied in a diversity of ways based on the co-operative type, size, and stage in life cycle. Whether you are new to co-operatives or an experienced professional, this session will stretch your thinking on governance as a system fit for values-based, member-owned, and democratically controlled organizations. You will leave the room with a renewed sense of the importance of governance structures and processes being consistent with the organization’s purpose while fulfilling goals, meeting objectives, and protecting member and community interests. This session highlights the critical importance of governance as a tool to set transformational purpose and vision for co-operatives to meet complex social, economic, and environmental agendas. Naturally, this includes all types of co-operatives across all sectors of the economy and society as we collectively seek to grow a strong co-operative economy.
Case study examples will be used to illustrate best governance practices, highlighting how strategic governance enables organizations to lead deeply on social justice, economic resilience, and the climate emergency, to name but a few challenges facing co-operatives today. To do all of this while being true to a people-centred enterprise model, governance systems must maintain member ownership and control while being democratic and responding to external and internal factors influencing members’ evolving needs and goals. Notably, individual co-operatives cannot do this alone; working together and across sectors is key to our collective future.
Email Erin.Hancock@smu.ca to register your interest in future offerings.
The Centre’s work on co-operative governance has been sustained at a high level of quality over many years, culminating in a major international research conference, and a recent book on the theme of humanistic governance. This has made an outstanding contribution to research on governance and has made a distinctive positive contribution to thinking about cooperative governance, thereby facilitating improving policies and practices of boards and managers.