Canada's first comprehensive reports on co-operative and credit union governance practices

Towards Excellence - 2004 National Report on Co-operative and Credit Union Governance Practices

This report includes data from over 400 Canadian co-ops and credit unions and provides the first and only national picture of Canadian co-operative board practices. The full national report includes data on co-operatives from different sectors (such as credit unions, retail, and agricultural co-operatives). A separate credit union national report, Measuring Up: 2004 National Report on Credit Union Governance Practices, is also available which includes a more detailed analysis of credit union governance practices with comparisons by credit union asset size. Customized reports for other sectors (such as retail or agriculture) are available by contacting the authors.

This report includes data from over 200 Canadian credit unions and provides the first and only national picture of Canadian credit union board practices. Measuring Up allows credit unions to compare their governance practices with peers of a similar size as the report compares directorship practices between credit unions of different asset size. Data on corporate sector practices are also included, allowing credit unions to see how their governance practices either lead or lag the corporate sector.

Both reports examine governance areas such as:

- board selection practices;
- board and committee composition;
- director terms and tenure;
- board and committee compensation;
- board roles and responsibilities;
- board and director evaluations;
- director education;
- board reporting and measurement practices;
- member and stakeholder relation practices;

Towards Excellence and Measuring Up will be of interest to boards and managers who are in the process of either reviewing or developing their board policies and practices, or who want to compare their board practices with other co-operatives, credit union and in some cases, the corporate sector.

Towards Excellence and Measuring up are joint research projects of the Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA) and Brown Governance Inc. (BGI).