No I in Team
The famous quote from The Office states, “there is no I in team “ If you don’t have an effective board of directors, it does not matter how great each person is on an individual basis – it is the board as a whole that must operate together, as this is what makes for a better business.
Having said that, you will note I have not stated that a board is a team, as I actually don’t believe it is. That is until they have reached a consensus, at which point their role is to make sure the decisions made are delivered as a team.
The reason I don’t call a board a team is that unlike a management team, all board directors have a legal duty to act independently, not being swayed by another director, no matter how persuasive or charismatic, or indeed how threatening they may be. But, once a decision is made, they must of course act together to deliver the decision, always acting in the best interests of the company.
How to Build a C-Suite
Building a C-Suite takes time and whilst sometimes a revolution is needed, more likely it will be evolution that delivers the best results.
As in any group of people that need to work together, harnessing the best of each other’s skills must be understood, alongside recognising their weaknesses so that all can better communicate.
The more diverse the board, by and large the better. In fact, it has been said, that if two people agree initially, one is unnecessary…a bit extreme but you get my point!
Over the years I have made more mistakes than I care to mention, but one lesson I have learnt, is that you should select slowly, and remove quickly. Firstly, look at personality fit, values and culture, and then at qualifications. I have learnt the hard way, that whatever qualification(s) they have, if the personality doesn’t fit with the rest of the board, the disharmony this causes is much more problematic.
Whilst legally a UK limited company only needs one director (two for a plc listed or otherwise), and indeed as most companies in the UK are SME’s and as such are more than likely to have only one director, a business that wants to grow and prosper is likely to struggle with a single director.
Corporate disasters of the last years have seen countless boards fail, and the reasons are numerous. These include not managing risk, failing to deal with a crisis, poor financial acumen, lack of members participation, blatant fraud and poor morals.
Our Progressive Board Leadership Programme looks at how you can either improve your current board by upskilling and reskilling your members, or by building the best board from scratch. It also looks at how to maintain the quality of the board members, contract correctly and to recognise what to do if you can’t change the people for the better. This will mean exiting them from the company as smoothly as possible, using our bullet proof service contracts.
What is a Board?
A board is a group of people who jointly supervise the activities of an organisation. They are elected by the shareholders to establish policies for corporate management, oversight and to make decisions on major company issues.
Perfect People and Numbers
No one is perfect, but there are some characteristics that will make for a better director. If you were to examine some high-profile board failures. For instance, JP Morgan and Lloyd’s banking groups, there was a distinct lack of industry and stock market experience. Whilst industry experience is not everything, a clear lack of knowledge and worse still a lack of investment in improving such knowledge is deplorable.
Skills are only part of the story. If the directors do not understand their role and responsibilities, they will set themselves up to fail, which is common amongst both large and small companies. Poorly run meetings that concentrate on operations, and not on future proofing the business only adds to the board’s problems.
A great board is dedicated to the organization. It’s members focus on delivering the plans agreed is paramount. A world class director and it’s board members should live and breathe the business.
Different Characters
True diversity goes way beyond gender; you need to consider age, ethnicity personalities, competency and independence. All this needs to be managed, as if it is poorly done, it will bring its own set of problems as communication may become more challenging and trust harder to win
As such this process needs careful thought and ongoing evaluation
Changing People
Training of senior persons often seems to stop when they reach the board room. Whereas in fact this is where it should start , and as for board evaluation , well where it is done , too often it’s just a tick list with few live actions being taken.
If Directors behaviours are not properly adhered to, then the ensuing risks for themselves, the rest of the board members and of course the company itself can be extreme.
When did you last examine your business continuity plan, or your crisis management policies?
And what about your stakeholder management process? Does your board have a connected policy?
This program provides the templates needed to conform and perform.
Board Papers and Processes
A board will always perform better, if they have robust reliable efficient and timely information
But none of this makes any difference if the board members cannot understand it or even worse don’t read it!
Far too many boards concentrate on the now rather than the future . Our new world board pack which you will receive as part of this program will change the way you run board meetings for the better, permanently
The Road Through a Successful M and A Process
Great company boards embrace change with a passion and are not only agile but have the financial know how to understand what makes transactions successful.
With 75% + of acquisitions failing to add value to a business. The incredible mistakes , made by so many on this journey, can be avoided with some simple guidelines.
On this course you will be provided with a fool proof guide on how the experts value companies and how to exit your own and pay no tax.
How to prepare for the due diligence adventure and an insight into the funding circus, including an insiders guide to crowd funding, that is more prevalent than ever.
With tip sheets and fool proof guides on how to translate the numbers like an investigatory journalist you will never be caught out again in the financial minefield of buyers sellers and investors.
