Corporate Governance in National Sports Associations

Introduction

Background

In recent years, with the remarkable results attained by Hong Kong athletes in the international sports arena, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China has increased its funding for National Sports Associations (NSAs) to sustain and promote sports development in Hong Kong.   In parallel, public expectations are rising for NSAs to enhance their governance in the areas of integrity, transparency, fairness and accountability.   The key to sports development in Hong Kong lies in the effective leadership and governance of NSAs which will only be achieved with their commitment and active participation.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) is organising a development programme on corporate governance for NSAs, with an aim to raise the awareness of office bearers and management staff of NSAs of their roles and responsibilities in strategic planning, effective board practices and risk management.  Under the programme, there will be a series of seminars conducted by top executives in local professional, business and sports sectors.  The programme will serve as a platform for sharing the latest information and exchanging views and experiences among NSAs.

Objective

The Development Programme aims at helping members of the executive committees, directors and management staff of subvented NSAs to broaden and consolidate their knowledge in corporate governance through experience sharing and seminars.

Seminar

In 2017, the LCSD organised a symposium and a series of special courses on "Governance, Leadership and The Future Development of Sports" for members of the Board of Directors and management staff of NSAs.  The topics of these courses included the new Companies Ordinance, directors’ duties and fiduciary duties, board practices and finance for directors.  The symposium and special courses aimed at enhancing the participants’ awareness of their roles and responsibilities in organising, managing and strengthening internal control, thereby raising the level of corporate governance of NSAs and further promoting the development of sports in Hong Kong.

Seminars with new topics are coming on stream.  Directors and staff of NSAs are encouraged to take part in the entire series of seminars, which consist of four modules.  Participants who complete all four seminars will be awarded a certificate.

Content

	Module 1	Module 2	Module 3	Module 4
Topic	The Companies Ordinance: Implications for Governance of National Sports Associations	Fiduciary Duties, Director’s Duties, and Sports Governance	Corporate Governance and Company Meetings of National Sports Associations	Finance For Directors of Non-Governmental Organisations - NSAs
Programme Content	National sports association as a company limited by guarantee Are you a “responsible person”? Review of articles of association Continuing obligations under the new Companies Ordinance New duty of care, skill and diligence for directors New provisions on member rights and general meeting Road ahead – from company law to corporate governance	International Development of Corporate Governance Companies Ordinance The Company and its Board Fiduciary Duties and Director’s Duties Corporate Governance for Subvented Organisations Case Application	Corporate governance principles Types of directors and their challenges Major forces shaping boardroom reform Code on Corporate Governance Practices Practical functioning of the board Skill-sets for board members How to prepare for meetings and chair meetings Evaluation of board performance	Regulatory framework & directors’ responsibilities in the preparation of accounts Uses of accounting in business management Financial reporting & corporate governance Accounting & internal control Basic Accounting conventions, standards and policies Interpretation of financial statements Planning & budgetary control Financial analysis for decision-making: investment and financing Cash flow management Performance measurement

Target Participants

Members of Board of Directors, Executive Committees, office bearers and management staff of subvented NSAs /SOs under Sports Subvention Scheme.

Award of Certificates

Participants will be awarded a Certificate of Attendance upon completion of each core module, and a Certificate of Completion for the 4 core modules (i.e. Modules 1 to 4) completed.

Outreaching Corporate Governance Training Programme

Content

To enhance understanding of corporate governance in NSAs, LCSD is launching the Outreaching Corporate Governance Training Programme (OCGTP) to allow flexibility for NSAs to Select training time, venue(s) and topic(s) (see topics below) according to their own schedules and needs. Service providers will arrange training for NSAs’ office bearers and management staff based on NSAs’ applications. NSAs may also apply to the OCGTP during annual general meeting, executive committee meeting or internal training.

OCGTP topics :

1. Understanding on Companies Ordinance for Directors : NSA
2. Fiduciary Duties, Responsibilities and Duties of Directors : NSA
3. Corporate Governance and Company Meetings of NSA
4. Finance For Directors : NSA
5. Overview of Risk Management
6. Cyber Security & Technology Crime Prevention : NSA
7. PR Crisis Communications and Best Practices
8. How to Deal with Conflict of Interest: Companies Ordinance
9. Managing Privacy Risk: Practical Application of “Six Data Protection Principles”
10. Value Creation by Directors
11. Strategies for Enhancing NSA Publicity and Image
12. Deep Dive Understanding of AoA and its impact to NSA
13. Online Company Meeting and Video Conference of NSA
14. Others : Customised the topic which related to the corporate governance

Enquiry

For further information, please contact the Sports Funding Office of the LCSD.

Telephone No.: 2601 8756