Board Director (Voluntary)

Mary MacKillop Today is currently looking for a Board Director. Preference will be given to an individual who has contemporary experience in international aid and development.

ABOUT MARY MACKILLOP TODAY

Mary MacKillop Today is a company limited by guarantee established by the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart (SOSJ). It is a registered charity with community development programs in Australia, Timor-Leste, Peru, and Fiji.

Mary MacKillop Today’s mission is to create opportunities for self-determination through learning for life so that all may flourish. Our purpose is to walk alongside people and communities at the margins in Australia and internationally in the spirit of Saint Mary MacKillop. We recently developed a Strategic Plan 2023-2028 with the key pillars of growing and activating our supporter community, strengthening and scaling our impact, amplifying voice, and sustaining a healthy and effective organisation.

Mary MacKillop Today is required to ground its Mission in the vision and mission of the SOSJ and as part of the mission of the Catholic Church. SOSJ retains canonical stewardship of this ministry, holding ownership of property assets and a number of reserved powers under the Constitution of Mary MacKillop Today.

Mary MacKillop Today values, respects and is committed to the safety of all people. The company has a zero tolerance for adult and child abuse or mistreatment. All Board appointees have a responsibility to commit to a culture of safeguarding. This includes completing safeguarding induction training and possibly ongoing safeguarding training.

INTERNATIONAL AID AND DEVELOPMENT EXPERTISE REQUIREMENTS

Mary MacKillop Today has a skills and diversity plan for the turnover and growth of our board over the next 5 years in line with the Strategic Plan. Key to this plan is the recruitment of a Director with skills in international aid and development.

Preference will be given to an individual who has contemporary experience in international aid and development, including understanding of the current landscape, challenges, and opportunities within the sector. The individual with this expertise will ideally be currently working in an NGO or international development consulting organisation with lived experience in one of the countries that we work. They will be able to provide guidance on our programs and insight into how we can better achieve impact.

ROLE OF THE BOARD DIRECTORS

Appointment is by the company Members for up to a three-year period and is a non-remunerated position. Members may remove Directors at their discretion.

The Directors have ultimate responsibility for the overall successful operations of Mary MacKillop Today. Duties relate to:

• the strategic direction of the of Mary MacKillop Today (in collaboration with SOSJ)
• financial operations and solvency
• all matters prescribed by law, including but not limited to, safety
• all major policy issues including, but not limited to, industrial relations and quality assurance.

Directors are expected to be forthright in Board meetings, and have a duty to question, request information, raise any issue, fully canvass all aspects of any issue confronting Mary MacKillop Today and cast their vote on any resolution in accordance with their own decision.
Outside the Boardroom, Directors are expected to support the letter and spirit of Board decisions in discussion with stakeholders.
As an incorporated work of the Sisters of Saint Joseph, Directors are expected to discharge their responsibilities in this context of Josephite spirituality, which includes a personal commitment to their own formation for mission and making decisions guided by Catholic Social Teaching.

KEY COMPETENCIES AND QUALITIES

Directors must uphold, through word and deed, the ethos and mission of Mary MacKillop Today and the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Candidates are not required to be of the Catholic faith but must have alignment to its values. The following competencies, experiences and attributes are expected in the position of Director.

Competencies:

• Knowledge of a director’s responsibilities – includes an understanding of the role as well as the legal, ethical, fiduciary and financial responsibilities
• Strategic expertise – the ability to review the strategy through constructive questioning and suggestion and contribute to the effective decision making of the Board
• Managing people and achieving change – experience in current management thinking on employment, branding, engagement, strategic vision and stakeholder communication

Professional/life skills and experience (in one or more of the following areas):

• international aid and Development
• fundraising
• financial investment/accounting
• marketing and communications
• community development
• education
• advocacy
• ICT/emerging technologies

Personal Attributes:

• Integrity – meeting fiduciary duties and responsibilities, acting ethically, having appropriate independence, putting the company’s interests before personal interests.
• Collaborative yet curious and courageous – a director must be able to function as an effective team member but also must have the curiosity to ask questions and the courage to persist in robust discussions with management and fellow board directors where necessary.
• Emotional intelligence – as well as self-awareness and self-management, a Director needs to be able to demonstrate empathy manifested through strong interpersonal skills. A Director must work well in a group, listen well, be tactful yet able to communicate in a cogent and candid viewpoint.
• Commercial judgment and instinct – demonstrates good business instinct and acumen in the context of a mission-based organisation; able to assimilate and synthesise complex information.
• Meaningful engagement – a willing participant with genuine interest in the company and its mission
• Commitment to personal formation and development – an openness to ongoing personal and professional learning and formation, with a willingness to identify their own personal response to stewardship and leadership in a Josephite context.

PROBITY CHECKS

To be eligible for appointment, candidates must hold a Director ID, and either hold a current National Criminal History Check or consent to such a check being undertaken by SOSJ prior to appointment. ASIC and ACNC register searches will also be undertaken.

Directors will be asked to sign a general Code of Conduct, Safeguarding Code of Conduct and complete a Register of Interests.

COMMITMENT EXPECTATIONS

The Board currently meets 6 times a year for around 2 hours. Meetings are hybrid and held online through Zoom and in person in North Sydney on Thursdays 4pm – 6pm. We also have an Audit, Finance, and Risk Committee, which meets 4 times per year, and a Safeguarding Committee, which meets for 30 minutes prior to every Board Meeting.

Directors are expected to lead and participate in personal and Board formation activities in accordance with the SOSJ Formation for Mission Framework.