The Editorial

While each of India’s 5 lakh+ registered nonprofits has a legal board, few are truly effective, or act as brand ambassadors, or work alongside leadership to advance the organisation’s mission. The critical question is: how do we build boards that are strategic, mission-aligned and meaningfully engaged?

The ILSS Centre of Excellence for Board and Governance highlights the transformative role strong boards play in organisational success. Through capacity-building programs, research, case studies and testimonials, we are building a growing body of evidence on their value. The CoE connects advisers with nonprofits seeking specific expertise and engages corporate leaders keen to understand the social sector and contribute to causes they care about. Its report, The State of Advisory Boards in India’s Social Sector 2025, points toward a more adaptive approach to governance, positioning advisory boards as a complementary source of expertise and aligning governance with evolving organisational needs.

This edition of the magazine spotlights examples of meaningful synergies between the corporate and social sectors, recognising that collaboration is essential to unlocking their collective potential.

Our Cover Story by Luis Miranda explores a corporate leader’s crossover journey, the transferable skills corporate leaders bring to the social sector, and the unlearning and relearning that such a transition entails.

In ILSS Insights, Meenal Manolika shares key takeaways from the CoE’s SPO convening, highlighting participants’ perspectives on how boards can better support organisational growth.

The Alumni Spotlight features Dilip Kumar Sivasankar, an ILSS Board Leadership Program alumnus, reflecting on his journey as an adviser and how the program enabled his entry into the sector. Mandar Kulkarni, an ILSS Board Governance Program alumnus, shares how mentors and advisers have organically shaped his organisation’s journey, with support from ILSS.

In ILSS Conversation, Govind Iyer and Ingrid Srinath explore what it takes to embed diversity and inclusion in the boardroom, including the mindset shifts needed to make this a reality.

In the Guest Article, ILSS Board Chair Srivatsan (Sri) Rajan examines the critical role of the board chair in a nonprofit.

The ILSS Tips section offers practical guidance on reading nonprofit financials, with Kavita Gunderia and Urmila Sampath demystifying a key area of learning for new board members. Shanthi Lakshmanan outlines important considerations for nonprofits in light of changes to FCRA guidelines.

Together, these contributions explore how purposeful board engagement can strengthen organisations and advance their missions. We hope this edition encourages social sector leaders to rethink board engagement and inspires prospective advisers to consider the value they could bring to nonprofit advisory boards.