How to Align Sport Governance With Your Values

Every Olympic cycle, familiar debates resurface. Canada’s medal count sparks renewed discussion about federal investment in high-performance sport—how funding has barely shifted in nearly two decades and, once adjusted for inflation, has effectively declined. The logic is straightforward: less money leads to fewer results.

At the same time, leaders across the sector are noticing another shift. Canada’s demographics are changing. Many newcomers arrive from regions where winter sport isn’t part of their lived experience. When you layer in language barriers, unfamiliarity with Canadian sport systems, cost, and a long-standing emphasis on single-sport selection and competitive pathways, it’s no surprise that fewer people are entering—and staying in—our sport pipeline.

These are real pressures. But there’s a third factor that receives far less attention, even though it sits squarely within the control of sport leaders:

How we govern.

The Insight: Values Only Matter When Governance Brings Them to Life

Boards and senior staff often spend significant time crafting strategy and developing values meant to guide organizational action. Over the last five years, many Canadian sport organizations have added inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility into their strategic plans and value statements.

On paper, that’s progress.

But embedding inclusion into a plan is not the same as governing to it. Values often become a heading in a document, not a lens for decision-making. Outside of the 3–5-year planning cycle, many organizations rarely revisit what their values look like in practice—or how governance might be helping or hindering them.

Here’s the core insight:

Governance practices must actively reinforce the values we’ve chosen—consistently and intentionally.

Below are six practical ways to make that happen.

One: Turn Values Into Governance Questions

Values become meaningful when they shape the questions leaders ask.

For example:

• Who is missing from this decision?
• How does this fee structure support or limit access?
• How are we listening to our community?

These questions help boards move from statements to action.

Two: Build Values Into Board Agendas

Most boards want to live their values—they just don’t make space for them.

Try:

• Adding a “Values in Action” item to each agenda
• Rotating which value is spotlighted
• Using values to frame strategic discussions

This keeps values present, not peripheral.

Three: Align Committees With Values

Committees are where much of the real governance work happens.

Examples:

• Nominations committees recruiting for lived experience, not just technical skill
• Governance committees reviewing policies through an inclusion lens
• Risk committees considering IDEA-related risks and opportunities

This spreads responsibility across the organization.

Four: Use Values to Guide Board Recruitment

If inclusion is a value, the board table should reflect the communities served.

Practical steps:

• Map board composition against community demographics
• Identify gaps in lived experience
• Adjust recruitment processes to reduce barriers

This is one of the most visible ways to live your values.

Five: Create a Values-Aligned Decision Framework

Values matter most when decisions are hard.

A simple framework might include:

1. Which value does this decision support?
2. Who benefits—and who might be excluded?
3. What assumptions are we making?
4. How does this reflect our commitments to inclusion and access?
5. How will we communicate this decision?

This brings clarity and consistency to complex choices.

Six: Make Values Visible in Communication

Values become real when people can see them in action.

Ways to communicate values:

• Use values language in board reports
• Highlight decisions that reflect commitments
• Share stories of values shaping choices
• Celebrate when staff or volunteers embody values

This strengthens trust and reinforces culture.

Bringing It All Together

You’re operating in a complex environment: funding pressures, shifting demographics, evolving expectations around safety and inclusion, and limited capacity.

But governance is a lever you control.

When you choose to govern to your values—not just talk about them—you:

• Strengthen trust
• Become more relevant to your community
• Create pathways for more people to see themselves in sport
• Align decisions with your stated commitments

If your organization has strong values on paper but you’re not confident they’re showing up in your governance practices, I’d be glad to help you spark that conversation with your board or leadership team.