Show Notes
Committee overload is one of the most common problems in volunteer organisations — and the answer isn’t working harder, it’s building smarter structures. Portfolios, subcommittees and working groups are three tools that every committee can use to share the workload, draw on skills from across the membership and free up committee meetings for the governance conversations that actually matter. This episode covers all three: what they are, how they work, and critically, where the boundaries are.
In This Episode
- Portfolios: giving every committee member a specific area of strategic ownership — and why it puts an end to seat warmers and passengers
- What portfolios should cover and how to match them to the skills already around the table
- Subcommittees: formal, ongoing groups that do the detailed work between meetings — and who can sit on them
- The governance principle that’s critical but often misunderstood: delegation, not abdication
- Terms of reference: what they must cover and why defining what’s NOT delegated matters just as much as defining what is
- Subcommittees as a talent pipeline — and what to do when someone turns out to be a nightmare to work with
- Working groups: the flexible, time-limited tool for specific tasks — and why they attract people who’d never join a subcommittee
- How to mine your membership for hidden gems — accountants, lawyers, marketers and IT specialists hiding in plain sight, waiting to be asked
Free Download
A terms of reference template is in the show notes. You’ll be able to download it and use it as your starting point.
This Week’s Challenge
Look at your current committee. Does every member have a portfolio? Are your subcommittees working from clear and up-to-date terms of reference? When did you last think about a working group for a specific task? Pick the gap that matters most right now and close it. The terms of reference template in the show notes is a good place to start.
And if you haven’t yet surveyed your membership for hidden gems — that’s a worthwhile afternoon’s work right there.
Got a Question for the Kates?
If you’ve got a governance question you’d like the Kates to tackle on the show, or a situation you’re not sure how to handle, use the contact form at thecommitteeroom.com.au. No question is too basic — if you’re wondering about it, someone else is too.
About Your Hosts
Kate Hartwig has spent forty years working in and around not-for-profit and membership organisations — as a CEO, director, and independent consultant. Her Committee Companion is a head start on good governance with checklists, frameworks and exemplars for committee members. katehartwig.com.au
Kate McPhee has three decades of hands-on experience helping small clubs and associations get more done with less stress. She is the author of Just a Tick, a plain-English governance guide for committees and boards. liquoriceallsorts.com.au
Together they offer governance health checks and practical support through Fresh Allsorts.
This podcast provides general information on best practice governance for small to medium not-for-profit associations. It is not legal advice.
Timestamps
00:04 — Sharing the load — or not
00:56 — Introducing the Kates and this episode on portfolios, subcommittees and working groups
02:02 — Portfolios
02:46 — What should the portfolios be?
03:09 — Portfolio leaders
04:30 — Match skills to portfolios
05:08 — Subcommittees
05:44 — Who sits on a subcommittee?
06:37 — Delegations
07:57 — Terms of reference
08:59 — Standing subcommittees
09:15 — Subcommittees as a talent pipeline
10:05 — Working groups
11:40 — Mine the membership for hidden gems
12:31 — Recap
13:17 — This week’s challenge
13:36 — Terms of reference template
13:55 — Ask Us Anything!
14:37 — Wrap-up and next week’s episode
Next Episode
Once you’ve built the structures — portfolios, subcommittees, working groups — how does everyone know what they’re actually authorised to do? Next episode, the Kates tackle delegations: the difference between ‘I wasn’t sure if I was allowed to’ and ‘I didn’t realise I couldn’t’, and why both are governance failures.
Resources & Links
🎙️ The Committee Room thecommitteeroom.com.au — episode archive, show notes, downloads and contact form
🍬 Fresh Allsorts freshallsorts.com.au — Governance Health Checks and practical services from both Kates
Kate Hartwig Consulting katehartwig.com.au — including the Committee Companion, a head start on good governance with checklists, frameworks and exemplars
Liquorice Allsorts Consulting liquoriceallsorts.com.au — including Just a Tick, Kate McPhee’s plain-English governance guide
LinkedIn: Kate Hartwig | Kate McPhee
You don’t need good luck if you’ve got good governance.
The Committee Room | thecommitteeroom.com.au