REALBoard Buzz™
Who Makes A Good Board Member?
I’m often asked what qualities distinguish a good board member from a not-so-good member, so that boards can try to recruit the former. In my opinion, there are three qualities. The first is a comprehensive understanding of the Policy Governance®...
PART 2: Does Your Board Need to Downsize Before it Implements Policy Governance®?
For Part 1, click here. You’re adopting Policy Governance – why would you consider downsizing? What are the possible benefits of a “smaller board”? One possible benefit is that with fewer members, you are more likely to hear everyone’s voice when talking...
PART 1: Does Your Board Need to Downsize Before it Implements Policy Governance®?
From time to time I like to Google the topic of board size – prompted either by a question I’ve been asked by a board – usually wanting to know the relationship between board size and effectiveness. Sometimes I go down the Google rabbit hole simply out of curiosity....
Are You Mything Out?
“Here’s why our board doesn’t use Policy Governance®.” It’s “one size fits all” It gives too much power to the CEO It only works in big organizations You can’t have committees It prescribes structures and size It’s too rigid Board members can’t talk to staff Directors...
When the Wheels Fall Off a Meeting
In my New Zealand-based governance consulting work, I’m privileged to work with a number of Māori tribal governance bodies. These are organisations which have been created (often by Act of Parliament) to govern the affairs of an iwi (or...
Board Business in a Virtual World
I just completed a weeklong meeting with an international organization that I chair. Normally, to minimize travel costs, we meet only twice a year for 5 days. Facing the restrictions for COVID-19 was daunting. Could we get...
Authority and Accountability
One of the features of the Policy Governance® system is its focus on accountability. In my experience, this feature sometimes provokes a negative reaction from observers who are not completely familiar with the system. I think this...
Post-Covid 19 Governance and the New Norm
I think it’s fair to say that I’m not the only one wondering: “When will this pandemic be over so that we can return to normal?” Of course, there are two absurdities to that question: a) no-one knows when it will be over; and b) we won’t be...
Handling CEO Non-Compliance with Policies in a Pandemic
This pandemic is challenging for boards and CEOs. One issue expressed to me by several boards is how to support the CEO if the CEO is unable to meet the board’s expectations stated in existing Ends and Executive Limitations policies due to the changed circumstances...
Revamping Board Agendas for Virtual Meetings – Part 2
In Part 1 of this series, we looked at what you might consider changing on your board agenda to ensure the organization has appropriate processes in place in relation to the pandemic. Now we will address how you might consider processing your agenda differently in...