Governance Design and Improvement

Effective governance helps organisations make clear, timely and accountable decisions. As organisations take on new responsibilities, establish partnerships or change the way they deliver services, existing governance arrangements may no longer meet their needs.

Governance structures can appear clear on paper while creating uncertainty in practice. Roles may overlap, decision-making may be slow, and responsibilities across boards, committees, management and related organisations may be unclear.

NineSquared helps government and public sector organisations assess whether their governance arrangements remain fit for purpose and identify practical opportunities for improvement. We combine governance and public policy experience with evidence, stakeholder insights and lessons from comparable organisations to provide advice that is rigorous, practical and tailored to each client’s circumstances.

What we do

Our Governance in Practice approach is based on hands-on involvement in establishing, reviewing and improving governance arrangements across government agencies, statutory bodies, partnerships and complex multi-stakeholder programs. This practical experience helps us identify governance issues that may not be apparent from organisational charts or formal documentation alone, and develop recommendations that are effective, achievable and aligned with how organisations operate in practice.

Our governance design and improvement services include:

Reviewing governance structures, roles, responsibilities and decision rights
Assessing accountability, oversight and decision-making effectiveness
Examining the interfaces between boards, committees, management and related organisations
Identifying governance gaps, risks, duplication and unnecessary complexity
Designing governance arrangements for partnerships, shared services and cross-organisational programs
Developing and assessing options for governance reform
Recommending practical implementation priorities and next steps.

Good governance should support an organisation’s future direction, not make delivery harder. Our work provides decision-makers with a clear and defensible basis for strengthening accountability, coordination, oversight and organisational performance.