Legally boards are required to ensure that the organization succeeds in its mission and has a well-thought-out strategy and doesn’t run into legal or financial issues. However, how boards take on the responsibilities of these boards can be very different managing data privacy in cloud computing and is largely dependent on the specific circumstances of the organization.

Boards often make the error of becoming too involved with operational issues which should be left to management or they are unclear about their legal obligations for decisions and actions made on behalf of a company. This confusion is often caused by boards not keeping up with the ever-changing requirements on boards or the unexpected issues such as financial crisis and resignations of staff. Typically, this is addressed by allowing for discussions about the challenges facing directors and providing them with instructions and a simple set of documents.

Another common error occurs when the board is able to delegate too much authority and not be able to review the issues it has given to others. (Except for the tiniest NPOs). In this case the board loses its ability to evaluate and no longer assess whether these operations contribute to satisfactory performance for the entire organization.

The board should also create a governance plan, which includes how it will interact with the general manager or CEO. This includes setting the frequency of board meetings and how members will be selected and removed, as well as the manner in which decisions are made. The board must also establish information systems that can provide valid information about its past and future performance to aid in making decisions.