Enhancing Boardroom Effectiveness - Investment Capital Growth

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Enhancing Boardroom Effectiveness

Posted by Cliff Locks On August 12, 2017 at 10:34 am

Enhancing Boardroom Effectiveness

The role of the Board is one of leadership. In order to lead effectively, you need to present a decisive and undivided course of action.

The boardroom is a politically complex arena. It is a place where:

  • Uncertainties are a constant
  • Evidence is rare
  • Uncertainties are the norm
  • Opinions are not defined succinctly
  • Opinions are diverse
  • There is a need for corporate intelligence
  • Loyalties are continually tested
  • Conflicts of interest thrive

A cohesive Board compromises to ameliorate conflict. Compromise is a legitimate and productive process when used to achieve positive end results. It’s considered an essential element when there is no unanimous decision.

Boards often become consumed by multiple strategic issues. Tactics involve expending resources, whereas strategy drives a vision for the future. Strategic issues should be considered a boardroom discussion, while tactical maneuvers remain the concern for the executives.

Increasingly, Boards are under growing levels of scrutiny from their own operations and shareholders, and are often viewed as more of an expense than a source of value. This is particularly true where operating authority has been largely entrusted to subsidiaries. Boards need to understand how to improve their value both from the perspective of both the company and shareholders.

Our Approach

Investment Capital Growth Consulting has the skill and experience to work with Boards to assist:

  • Chairs to conduct Board affairs and not run the business, while maintaining discretion at all times
  • Board members to outline, present and advocate their position in a succinct and diplomatic manner
  • Board members to improve their ability to discover information through perfecting their analysis skills
  • The Board to enhance relationships between its members and the organization and, specifically, recognize how its values, attitudes and actions impact the performance of the overall organization
  • Gain insight into the [often hidden] dynamics within the Board that can adversely affect performance;
  • Examining and differentiating the dynamic relationships between executive and non-executive, as opposed to the personal relationships between individuals.

Individual and personal issues discovered during the course of this process are usually dealt with separately, during one-to-one mentoring and coaching sessions. This avoids any negative impact on the performance of the Board.

The ICG Consulting Framework

ICG believes advancement can be made in a relatively short period of time. Three two-hour meetings with four to six weeks between meetings is often sufficient to effect change. This allows boards the time to reflect on, experiment with and implement new practices.

To generate the most effective change, we find it best for meetings to be conducted in a neutral atmosphere. We encourage sessions to be held away from the Board’s standard meeting place.