Leading A Board

This book represents the first cross-country study of the work of board chairs in Europe. It includes unique data collected through interviews with almost 200 experienced board chairs and their key stakeholders – board members, CEOs and shareholders. The book focuses on what board leaders actually do, rather than what they should do, and elaborates on a conceptual contingency framework for understanding chairs’ work in Europe. This includes a comprehensive list of chair practices – iterative behaviour strategies for getting things done, comparisons of contexts for chairs’ work and practices among nine countries, and identification of cross-European and country-specific trends that will shape the work of board leaders in the next decade. The book will benefit incumbent and future chairs, directors, shareholders, CEOs, executives and regulators in developing a systemic understanding of the work of a chair in the European business context and gaining insights into how the leader of the board deals with specific challenges.

Is your firm’s board creating value—or destroying it? Change is coming. Leadership at the top is being redefined as boards take a more active role in decisions that once belonged solely to the CEO. But for all the advantages of increased board engagement, it can create debilitating questions of authority and dangerous meddling in day-to-day operations. Directors need a new road map—for when to lead, when to partner, and when to stay out of the way. Boardroom veterans Ram Charan, Dennis Carey, and Michael Useem advocate this new governance model—a sharp departure from what has been demanded by governance activists, raters, and regulators—and reveal the emerging practices that are defining shared leadership of directors and executives. Based on personal interviews and the authors’ broad and deep experience working with executives and directors from dozens of the world’s largest firms, including Apple, Boeing, Ford, Infosys, and Lenovo, Boards That Lead tells the inside story behind the successes and pitfalls of this new leadership model and explains how to: • Define the central idea of the company • Ensure that the right CEO is in place and potential successors are identified • Recruit directors who add value • Root out board dysfunction • Select a board leader who deftly bridges the divide between management and the board • Set a high bar on ethics and risk With a total of eighteen checklists that will transform board directors from monitors to leaders, Charan, Carey, and Useem provide a smart and practical guide for businesspeople everywhere—whether they occupy the boardroom or the C-suite.

This book represents the first cross-country study of the work of board chairs in Europe. It focuses on what board leaders actually do, rather than what they should do, and elaborates on a conceptual contingency framework for understanding chairs’ work in Europe. In this second edition, 18 experts from 14 European countries interviewed more than 300 chairs, CEOs, directors and shareholders to detect and compare specific practices and instruments that chairs use to deal with various challenges. Researchers also assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work of chairs and the boards they lead. The book benefits incumbent and future chairs, directors, shareholders, CEOs, executives and regulators in developing a systemic understanding of the work of a chair in the European business context and gaining insights into how the leader of the board deals with specific challenges.

This book provides unique and powerful insights into what it takes to succeed as a chairman leading a modern organization. Based on global research, the authors unveil the six disciplines of world-class chairmen. Leading the Board will become the standard work of reference and inspiration for the world's chairmen and would-be chairmen alike.

A comprehensive guide to transforming boards and achieving best-practice governance in any organisation. When practising good governance, the board is the vital driver of organizational success, while fostering positive social impact and economic value creation. At all levels, executives around the world are faced with complexities rising from disruptive business models, new technologies, socio-economic changes, shifting political circumstances, and an array of other sources. High Performance Boards is the comprehensive manual for attaining best-in-class governance, offering pragmatic guidance on improving board quality, accountability, and performance. This authoritative volume identifies the four dimensions, or pillars, which are crucial for establishing and maintaining best-practice boards: the people involved, the information architecture, the structures and processes, and the group dynamics and culture of governance. This methodology can be applied to any board in the world, corporate or non-profit organization, regardless of size, sector, industry, or context. Readers are introduced to a fictitious senior board member – an amalgamation of board members from well-known organisations – and follow her as she successfully handles real-life challenges with effective governance. Drawn from the author's 20 years of practice and confidential work with boards across the world, this book: Demonstrates how high-performance boards innovate and refine their practices Discusses examples of board failures and challenges, including case studies from both for-profit and non-profit organisations including international organizations and state-owned agencies or even ministries Provides a proven framework to create best-in-class governance Includes a companion website featuring tools for board assessment and board practice High Performance Boards has inspired more than 3000 board members around the world. This book is essential reading for professionals and managers interested in governance and board members, senior managers, investors, lawyers, and students of governance.

Are you new to a board and have no idea what’s expected of you? Do you know what a board’s six key responsibilities are? Do you know what your relationship with the Executive Director should be? If not, this book is for you. So many board members—especially of small nonprofits—want to support a nonprofit and readily accept the invitation to join the board. It’s only then that they discover they are in over their heads, with no idea of their expectations and responsibilities. The Little Book of Boards is here to throw that drowning board member a rope. Told with a conversational style, this book will lead you through the basics of being on a board, how meetings work, and what’s expected between meetings. In addition, at the back of the book are several in-depth resources for understanding Roberts Rules of Order, bylaws, committee structures, board leadership, and much more. Perfect for any new board member—or for an entire board that is feeling lost—this book and its common sense approach will serve you every year you are on the board.

The Great Chair speaks to a single issue—why board chairs are more important than ever for effective governance. This book tackles board leadership fundamentals, such as: • How effective board chairs engage colleagues to reach consensus, • How effective chairs lead the board so the board, in turn, fosters organizational effectiveness, • The trick to ensuring a focus on the highest priorities, • And—critically—how to build and sustain trust with the CEO and within the board. With nearly four decades of experience with the good, bad, and ugly of the board universe, Brian Hayward hones in on practical ways to develop the thinking and behaviour necessary for anyone taking this seat. Through real-life examples, and stories featuring Paul McCartney, Kalahari bushmen, Robert Maxwell, camels, Buddhist parables, and the Boeing 737 Max, readers will see how chairing a board requires leadership competency of its own (distinct from being a director). See what skills differentiate mediocre chairs from a truly great ones. The Great Chair has take-home value—with practical checklists you can use—and a personal development roadmap for you to develop the key skills central to effectively engaging individuals and groups. If you are on a personal journey that may include becoming a board chair—whether the organization exists for profit, and whether it is corporate, family, venture, public agency, or charity in form—The Great Chair was written for you.

The book discusses the various aspects of diversity of corporate boards in terms of gender, age, nationality, tenure, education, experience and personalities. It enumerates the need for such diversity in each category and related concerns. Statistics from around the world support the authors’ claims. The nine chapters in this short book have not been previously published. Explains the dimensions of board diversity and ways to use them to increase effectiveness. Supports its findings with statistics from around the world. Relevant for researchers and professionals working in corporate governance and corporate finance