Policies for Nonprofits and Conflicts of Interest
A nonprofit conflict of interest policy is a written document created by an organization to prevent negative outcomes to the organization in the event that a board member or key employee's personal interests conflict with organizational interests.
Other People Are Reading
-
Definition
-
A conflict of interest exists when a board or staff member's personal interests conflict with the best interest of the organization, or when a board member or key employee stands to personally benefit financially from a decision pending before the board. The nonprofit's conflict of interest policy includes procedures to monitor and manage conflicts that may arise.
Who is Affected
-
Board members, officers and senior staff are affected by the conflict of interest policy. All of these should receive a copy of the policy, review it and sign it at least annually. Copies of the signed policies should be kept on file, and the policy review should be documented in the minutes of the meeting in which it took place.
-
Disclosure and Management of Conflicts
-
Board members and key staff should voluntarily disclose any conflicts of interest as they arise. The board of directors is required to deal with the conflict according to their policy. Those who report a conflict often are excused from voting on decisions that affect them personally.
-
References
Resources
- Photo Credit wait a minute now! image by Jake Hellbach from Fotolia.com
