Mike Hoskin, chair of Creative Dorset

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"For the chair, there’s an opportunity to go out and have real high impact discussions about their organisation, to be ambassadors and to make sure that their organisation remains vital and keeps learning."

by WebAssistant — last modified Jul 21, 2010 12:56 PM

Mike Hoskin image

About the chair

Name: Mike Hoskin

Chairs: Creative Dorset

www.creativedorset.co.uk

Job: Cultural Development Officer, Dorset County Council

Interview Date: 14th December 2009

About the interview:

Trouble with the books

Mike has had some dramatic times as a chair.

Some years back, in his early days as a non profit chair, Mike Hoskin had become suspicious when he discovered some bills that had been left outstanding. He had never worried about the accounts before, having always been assured everything was in order. He was simply required to sign the odd cheque now and again, which, come to think of it, was always done at the end of meetings when he was rushing out the door.

The treasurer of the organisation sidled into Mike’s office, placed a box on his desk and waltzed out. The box contained hundreds of receipts. The accounts book had not had a single figure entered in it for two and a half years. Over the course of the past 3 years, the treasurer of the organisation had managed to salt away approximately £15,000 from the organisation through some 'creative' accounting.

Under investigation

The police were informed, triggering a hard-handed investigation from the Charity Commission. A court case was brought against the treasurer, which resulted in a two-year prison sentence. Staff were made redundant and Mike was left to pick up the pieces (including the receipts, a challenge that fell to Mike’s long suffering mother).

“I think the advice is to always question,” Mike says. He explains some simple rules. Firstly, never sign a blank cheque. “This is the golden rule but I bet many organisations do it. I did.”

Secondly, make sure you know where the accounts book is kept, and check it, even if you don’t understand it. Legally, it should be available for inspection at every board meeting. Check it’s up to date and make sure there is a rigorous system in place referencing cheques back to invoices.

“No-one will think any the worse of you for doing that because it’s your job.”

His final piece of advice is to do everything possible to make sure that you don’t end up under Charity Commission investigation because, in his words, “it is not a pleasant thing”.

A rewarding challenge

Another organisation that is close to Mike’s heart is Take Art, which he chaired for 12 years. Since he has been on the board, the organisation has gone from employing two people to employing 18.

“It’s now a different kettle of fish, a different animal,” he says. “You move from knowing the two people very well, to not knowing some of the staff at all…You can solve two people’s problems in an afternoon,” he explains. “You can’t do that with 18!”

Mike speaks of the dedication it takes to be a board member. Imagine driving 30 or 40 miles on an icy January evening to attend a lengthy board meeting, or getting lost looking for tiny remote church halls in the dark to support a performance.

“I wouldn’t change it for the world, because these are very very rewarding organisations to be part of,” he says “but it is a challenge!”