Good governance directly determines whether strategic choices are implemented decisively, whether the right people are around the table, and whether management and the team are given the space to do their work.
In the cultural and welfare sector, this topic is currently high on the agenda. The 2020 Cultural Governance Code embedded eight principles for good governance, and in September 2025 the Cultural Management Fund, led by Prof. Dr. Annick Schramme, launched a new study into the impact and effectiveness of that code. At the same time, the Strategic Vision Note on the Arts and Cultural Heritage 2026-2030 clearly states that diversity in governance positions is insufficient, a finding that aligns with the diversity assessment carried out by Flanders Arts Institute in the arts sector in 2024. The key question today is therefore: how do you give concrete shape to good governance within your own organisation?
Good governance is first and foremost a process. The Cultural Governance Code therefore works with the principle of 'apply and explain': each organization gives shape to the principles based on its own scale, complexity and maturity. A board of friends in a young nonprofit association and a supervisory board in an established institution each follow their own logic. Both can embody good governance, as long as the choices are made consciously and regularly reviewed. The strength lies in the attitude: consciously reflecting on and acting from one's own governance practice.
In practice, four challenges keep coming to the fore.
- The composition of the board should ideally align with the mission and vision, and reflect the field and the target group.
- Decision-making proceeds decisively.
- The board-management tandem functions through clear roles and responsibilities.
- And the changing of the guard runs smoothly thanks to a well-considered approach to recruitment, retention and fresh energy.
Underlying those four challenges is one core attitude: governing at a healthy distance. A strong board sets the policy lines, formulates the intended impact and gives management and the team the space to implement that policy substantively and operationally. Whether asked or not, it adopts a critical-constructive stance. That attitude takes shape through concrete instruments: a rotation schedule that ensures both renewal and continuity, an induction programme for new directors, internal regulations that further elaborate the governance of the governing bodies, and an annual self-evaluation of its own functioning.
You build an attitude through concrete steps. That is why, at S&L, we brought together the recommendations from the culture and welfare sectors with our many years of experience in a Good Governance Checklist. Forty-two recommendations, grouped around seven domains: mission and vision, general meeting, governing body, integrity, organisational structure and HR policy, transparency, and policy preparation. The checklist makes it possible to take stock of the current situation and provides guidelines for those who want to build a strong board in a powerful tandem with the rest of the organisation.
For a more in-depth look via our good governance quick scan or a tailored conversation, Davy De Laeter is ready to help. Watch the good governance webinar.
