Co-operative businesses are governed and run by boards of directors. They manage the staff, create policies and procedures, and make decisions that benefit the business. Their job is to make sure the co-op is healthy and functioning well. A co-op board is made up of members of the co-op, who are elected at its AGM.

Responsibilities of the board:

1. Manage financial matters of the co-operative: It’s important for the board to have a strong understanding of the co-op’s financial position. This can be done with support from staff or an accountant.. The board with management will lead the creation of an annual budget, monitor revenue and expenses, and present the annual return and budget back to the members at the annual meeting. Some members of the board will have signing authority on the co-op’s accounts and their signatures will be required for items like cheques, agreements, chequing accounts, annual returns, and applications.
2. Strategic Planning: The board provides leadership to the organization and shapes its direction. It creates, updates, and maintains strategic plans that include the co-op’s agenda, goals, and key opportunities. The board will regularly identify projects and manage the co-op’s investments.
3. Create policies and procedures: The board will create policies when first incorporating the co-op, and on an ongoing basis. Some policies will be created in response to the co-op’s business, or as challenges and opportunities arise. These policies relate to things like finances, membership, conflict of interest, information and technology, safety, and elections.
4. Management: The board usually provides oversight to managers. The board will have the final say on many important decisions and may have to deal with conflict or debate that could arise. For example, it’s the board’s job to decide how to allocate the co-op’s profits. To do this, it needs to take a number of things into consideration: adding to reserve funds, and investing in the co-op.
5. Engage the members: At the end of the day, the co-op exists to serve its members. The board should engage members in important decisions and happenings with the co-op. The board can help ensure members have a sense of ownership with their co-op by communicating openly with them.