Across the development sector, governance is the variable that determines everything else: whether an organisation can make a fast decision in a crisis, whether a Board can hold a CEO accountable without the relationship breaking down, whether a donor, a member state, or a community actually trusts what they are told. And most importantly, it determines whether the organisation is equipped with the right systems, structures and leadership to deliver effectively on its mission.
And yet, in most organisations, governance is the last thing that gets a structured review. Reviews are triggered in states of crisis and downfall, instead of as regular health checks of the organisation.
SRI Executive has worked with development organisations for nearly three decades — multilaterals, INGOs, development finance institutions, and foundations. What we see consistently is not a lack of intent. Boards want to govern well, and Chairs want to lead effectively. But the problem is that most governance systems were built for a different era. They have not kept pace with the complexity, the scrutiny, or the speed that these organisations now face.
The consequences are predictable: decisions take too long, accountability is diffuse, risk oversight is triggered by incidents rather than foresight, and Board–Executive relationships are strained rather than strategic.
A New Framework for a New Operating Environment
This is why we developed the Governance Maturity Index (GEM Index™) - a framework built specifically for the development sector, grounded in findings from SRI's 2026 Governance Effectiveness Benchmarking Report across 40+ impact organisations.
The GEM Index™ assesses governance across seven dimensions: Strategy, Risk, Transparency and Accountability, Stakeholder Engagement, Board Effectiveness, Ethics and Integrity, and Agility.
Each dimension is mapped across four maturity levels, from ad hoc and reactive to proactive and anticipatory. The goal is not a score; rather, it is a shared, honest picture of where governance is strong, where it is not, and where focused effort will have the greatest impact.
What makes the GEM Index ™ different is that it reflects the realities of development organisations specifically, recognising the challenges of multilevel governance structures, competing stakeholder interests, constrained operating environments, and the need to balance transparency with political sensitivity.
The Board Chair's Governance Maturity Playbook
The Board Chair's Governance Maturity Playbook is a practical tool designed to make that honesty easier. It contains the full GEM Index ™ framework, grounded in findings from SRI's 2026 Governance Effectiveness Benchmarking Report, alongside everything a Board needs to move from assessment to action:
- The GEM Index™ — a four-level maturity framework across seven governance dimensions, built specifically for development sector organisations
- A 2-hour Board assessment process — structured, time-bound, and designed to be run by the Chair with no external facilitation required
- A Board Chair's governance checklist — practical questions across all seven dimensions to test whether governance is working in practice, not just on paper
- A Governance Profile and Priority Map — a template for translating assessment outcomes into a focused improvement agenda with clear ownership
- Near-term and structural actions — concrete steps organised across two horizons: what a Board can do in the next six months, and what stronger governance looks like over two years
This playbook is designed to be a starting point for Boards to create a shared, honest view of current governance performance and agree on where to focus next.
Governance maturity is not an end state. It is a continuous capability, built through regular assessment, honest conversation, and deliberate improvement. The Boards that do this well are not the ones with the most policies. They are the ones with the clearest shared understanding of where they stand.
Download the playbook here. If you would like to explore a more comprehensive governance review for your organisation, we would welcome the conversation.
