Six Habits Revisited

Whenever we write a Savvy Director blog — or create any other DirectorPrep content for that matter — we make a critical assumption about our readers.

We assume that you want to be the best director you can be, that you want to be seen as a valuable member of your board, and you want to be able to influence board decisions.

In other words, you want to be savvy, as in Savvy Director.

In our view, being a savvy director is all about what you know, and how you think, communicate, and behave in the boardroom.

We’ve boiled “being savvy” down to six habits. Once you’ve got a handle on them and you’re practicing them consistently, your life as a board director can be tremendously satisfying.

The Research on Director Effectiveness

The habits we’re talking about here are those required to be an effective director — one who is valued by their board. We didn’t dream up these behaviors out of the blue. They’re based on extensive research supplemented by our own observations, then vetted by board directors whom we respect and admire.

Some of the best, most accessible, research on this topic comes from Russell Reynolds Associates, a global advisory firm that works with public, private, and non-profit organizations. Every three years, they survey directors about the behaviors that most impact board effectiveness.

The original survey, conducted in 2016, found that directors around the world were consistent in identifying the attributes that define an effective director. Here are the top five:

1. Have the courage to do the right thing for the right reasons.
2. Constructively challenge management.
3. Demonstrate sound business judgment.
4. Ask the right questions.
5. Possess independent perspective.

Russell Reynolds conducted a second survey in 2019 and a third in 2022, publishing their findings in the report ‘Director Performance: The High Impact Behaviors of the Most Effective Directors.’ (You can download the full report here.)

Their original findings in 2016 inspired us as we developed our Savvy Director Framework. The 2022 report identifies baseline behaviors and high performing director attributes. Taken together, these high impact behaviors continue to align well with the Six Habits of our Savvy Director Framework

The Savvy Director Framework

At DirectorPrep, we believe that the knowledge, skills, attributes, and behaviors that characterize an effective director can be distilled down to six habits, and we’ve created a simple framework to capture them. We’re confident that if you consistently practice these habits, you’ll rapidly become one of the most valuable assets for any board — a thoughtful, wise, and courageous director.

We call our framework The Six Key Habits of The Savvy Director. The framework depicts the six key habits in a continuous improvement cycle. That’s because savvy directors never stop learning.

By the way, you should know that our Savvy Director blog posts are each tagged with one of the six habits, allowing you to filter by topic to discover everything we’ve previously written that falls within that particular subject.

Let’s briefly explore each of the six habits.

Key Habit # 1 — Build Governance Skills

Learn the rules of the road. Access the resources you need to understand the board’s stewardship role and your responsibilities as a director.

You can’t expect to be a savvy director without being able to answer two basic questions: “What’s the board responsible for?” and “What’s a director’s job?”

Building governance skills involves becoming familiar with topics such as the board’s responsibilities, its structure and processes, how meetings are run and decisions made, what makes a board effective and how to keep it that way, and how modern governance is evolving to meet today’s challenges.

Understanding governance also involves mastering the role of the individual director — your legal duties, what’s expected of you, where to focus your time and attention, and how to protect yourself from potential liabilities.

These fundamentals are what we call the “nuts and bolts” of board governance.

Key Habit # 2 — Prepare for Meetings

PREP for success! Be ready to contribute to board discussions and influence decisions.

When you open up the package for an upcoming board or committee meeting, the length of the agenda and sheer volume of reading material can be overwhelming. That’s when using a proven approach for meeting preparation really makes a difference.

Here at DirectorPrep, we like to follow the PREP Framework:

• Preview the material.
• Review in detail.
• Establish some questions.
• Pick your priorities.

Whether or not you choose to follow the PREP Framework, it’s important to find a repeatable process that works for you. Make a habit of getting down to the work of preparing for a meeting with plenty of time to spare. Picture how confident you’ll feel walking into the boardroom (or sitting at your computer for a virtual meeting) when you’re thoroughly prepared.

Key Habit # 3 — Ask Great Questions

Stay curious. Help the board move forward with well thought-out questions that get to the heart of the issues.

Asking questions is one of the best ways that any director — whether new to the role or a seasoned veteran — can contribute to the work of the board.

With the right questions you can accomplish anything as a director. You can establish facts, clarify information, deepen understanding, challenge assumptions, generate ideas, make decisions, and build trust.

And the best part is, if you choose your words carefully and guard you tone of voice and body language, you can accomplish all that without offending anyone or making them feel defensive.

So, bring your curiosity to the boardroom and contribute to building your board’s culture of inquiry.

Key Habit # 4 — Collaborate with Others

Treat your fellow board members and management with respect. Work toward reaching a common understanding.

A well-functioning board is a lot like a sports team — a group of talented individuals, each with unique and complementary strengths, all setting aside their personal agendas to help the organization succeed.

As a director, you don’t have individual power, but you’re able to exert influence on your fellow board members. In that way, you have a say in board decisions. Good communication, active listening, building trust, conflict resolution — all of these are skills that make a savvy director valuable to their board.

Don’t forget, people remember how you make them feel. And how they feel about you affects how they hear what you have to say in the boardroom.

Key Habit # 5 — Think Independently

See with your own eyes. Avoid Groupthink. Challenge the status quo in a respectful way.

There’s room around the board table for diverse thinking styles — analytical and strategic; people-focused, data-focused, and process-focused; big picture thinkers and detailed thinkers; idealists, realists, and pragmatists; risk tolerant and risk averse — but there’s really no room for fuzzy thinking, muddled thinking, or wishful thinking.

Independent thinking means relying on your own perceptions and judgment, instead of just conforming to the majority view to avoid rocking the boat. You’re expected to gather information from different sources, evaluate it objectively and rationally, and understand the logical connection between ideas.

Work at developing self-awareness so you can get better at recognizing and dealing with the biases and assumptions that get in the way of clear thinking.

Key Habit # 6 — Demonstrate Courage

Maintain your integrity. Don’t be afraid to do the right thing for the right reasons.

A Savvy Director reader once told us, “No one wants to be the director who disrupts the agreeable flow of the proceedings. But it’s exactly this — sharing and listening to diverse views — that produces truly great outcomes in the board room. You’re at the table for a reason and remaining silent isn't it. Whatever you have to contribute may be exactly what the group needs to hear.”

The lesson for every director? Don't let fear outweigh courage. Hold yourself and your fellow board members to a high standard. Character traits like integrity, accountability, and drive affect how you make important decisions in the boardroom and in your life.

Get in the habit of speaking up for what you believe is right. With practice, it will become easier.

Why Habits?

A habit is defined as an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary. Habits are efficient — they allow us to perform useful behaviors without wasting time and energy deciding what to do.

Habits can form without any intention, in a passive process where we reinforce habits by doing them unconsciously over and over again.

But habits can also be deliberately cultivated through repeated intention and effort. Eventually they become skills we perform with little or no thought.

That’s why we refer to the six Savvy Director behaviors as habits. We want them to become easy for you, even automatic.

You can intentionally rewire your brain to form habits. According to psychologists, the following practices will bolster the likelihood that you’ll establish desired behaviors as habits. Keep trying until the habit is your new norm.

• Give yourself positive reinforcement. When you’ve engaged in the desired behavior, mentally congratulate yourself and reinforce it as soon as possible with a small treat. For instance, when you’ve finished your meeting PREP, take a break and watch your favorite show, read a book, or listen to a podcast.
• Envision your future. Often the benefits of positive behavior are relatively far off, so it helps to picture yourself reaping the benefits in the future. Imagine clearly and specifically how you’ll feel in the future by engaging in the behavior now. For instance, say out loud, “If I establish some great questions to ask now, I’ll feel really well-prepared and confident when the topic comes up at the board meeting.”
• Make decision rules. Create little rules for yourself about how you’ll respond in a particular situation. This removes the need for you to decide in the moment, making it less likely that you’ll do something that works against the habit you’re trying to build. For example, “When I receive the board package, I’ll give it a quick read on the same day,” or “When there’s something I disagree with in the board meeting, I’ll speak up.”
• Shape your environment. Your environment influences your behavior, so take the necessary steps to support the habit you’re trying to build. For example, set aside a quiet, private place for attending virtual meetings, so you can communicate and collaborate better with your fellow directors online.
• Get others involved. Tell other people about your goals. Simply telling others puts you “on record” and makes you more likely to follow through. For instance, if you’re working on building governance skills, ask fellow board members to attend a training session with you.

A Download for You

We hope you’ll download this short e-book, Six Key Habits of The Savvy Director. It dives a little deeper into each one of the key habits.

And don’t forget, every one of our Savvy Director blog posts is tagged, so you can filter by topic for content relevant to each habit.

Your takeaways:

Work at building these six habits to help you become the best board director you can be:

1. Build governance skills. Access the resources you need to understand the board’s stewardship role and your responsibilities as a director.
2. Prepare for meetings. Spend time before each meeting so you are ready to add real value to board and committee discussions.
3. Ask great questions. Stay curious. Help the board move forward with well thought-out questions that get to the heart of issues.
4. Collaborate with others. Treat the board and management with respect. Work toward reaching a common understanding.
5. Think independently. See with your own eyes. Avoid Groupthink and challenge the status quo in a respectful manner.
6. Demonstrate courage. Maintain your integrity. Don’t be afraid to do the right thing for the right reasons.

Resources:

• Director Performance: The High Impact Behaviors of the Most Effective Directors. © 2022 Russell Reynolds Associates.
• The Six Key Habits of The Savvy Director. Scott Baldwin. The Savvy Director. September 2020.
• The 10 Most Essential Attributes of High-Performing Board Directors. James Drury Partners. November 2024.
• The 9 best attributes of effective board directors. Paul Smith. Future Directors Institute. April 2024.
• What Makes an Effective Director? Watson. September 2023.
• 5 Ways to Establish New Habits. Michael W. Wiederman, Ph.D. Psychology Today. January 2025.

Thank you.

Scott

Scott Baldwin is a certified corporate director (ICD.D) and co-founder of DirectorPrep.com – an online membership with practical tools for board directors who choose a growth mindset.

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