Stewardship in Practice

For Purpose

You did not join the board to manage a portfolio

Most people who govern a charitable corpus did not join the board to manage an investment portfolio. They joined because they believe in the mission. Yet the law, the regulator and the community expect them to discharge real financial responsibilities with care, diligence and skill.

The reassuring truth is that you do not need to be an investment expert to govern a corpus well. You do need to understand the principles at stake, ask the right questions and ensure the right structures are in place. This guide is written to help volunteer trustees, directors and investment committee members do exactly that.

A corpus is a mission resource, not just a financial asset

A corpus is not simply a pool of capital. It is an obligation to the people a charity exists to serve, and it must endure long after the current board has moved on. How it is invested, what it generates and how sustainably it is managed are mission decisions as much as financial ones.

That reframing has a practical consequence: investment decisions cannot be delegated wholesale to an adviser, however capable. Only the board can answer what the corpus is for. The board’s job is active ownership of the framework and active accountability for outcomes, not involvement in individual investment selection.