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Much has been written and discussed about purpose since May 2021, when we posted our Savvy Director blog, The Purpose-Led Board. One of the key points for boards and their management teams was a siren call to collaborate toward a common understanding of the purpose â the âwhyâ â that guides the mission, vision, and values supporting their work.
When organizations are formed, thereâs usually a clear purpose in mind. Itâs often described as the reason why a company or organization exists â bey...
We say it all the time â âPreparation is the key to success in the boardroom.â Thatâs why we call our company DirectorPrep. Thatâs why our tagline is âReady for your board meeting?â
And thatâs why we developed the PREP Framework that provides individual directors with a consistent, repeatable process to prepare for board meetings. We want to support directors to be ready for their board meeting every time. (Visit the PREP for Success page on our website to download the PREP Framework.)
Bein...
In our last Savvy Director blog, we explored how a director may incur personal liability because of their board service. Practicing due diligence is all well and good, but a directorâs actions or inactions may still expose them to litigation and penalties. Thatâs why companies provide their directors with protection through indemnification.
Well-crafted Directors and Officers (D&O) insurance provides an additional line of defense. As a director, itâs a good idea not just to confirm that there...
When you join a board of directors, and throughout your service on the board, you probably wonât give much thought to the personal financial risk youâve taken on. And yet, a past board decision could come back to haunt you.
In general, the legal structure of a corporation provides you with protection from personal liability. But that protection is limited. There are instances where directors are held personally liable for a companyâs violations of laws or regulations. The possibility of being...
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Your success as a board director isnât about how smart you are, itâs about your willingness to do the work. Iâm calling it âBoardroom Gritâ. Is there such a thing?
Think about the wealthy dude who gets a seat at the high profile charity board table because of the size of his familyâs foundation and the potential for a sizeable gift someday ⊠how gritty is that when he never opens the meeting materials and confirms that reality with his off-topic comments and rabbit-hole questions?
Todayâs S...
Hereâs a recent email from a DirectorPrep member: âI am serving on a board that does not have much understanding of risk management. What suggestions would you have to get the discussion going?â
Thatâs a great question from a risk instigator â a board director whoâs looking to find a way to push their risk management rock up a hill when their fellow directors donât see much value in having the discussion.
Thatâs okay. It wonât be the last time directors view risk management as nothing more ...
For the modern board director, using AI to help prepare for board meetings allows you to do two things at once.
First, youâll increase your comfort level with generative AI. Experts advise board directors to increase their awareness and knowledge of AI. One way to start is to get hands-on with an AI tool that suits your own purposes.
Second, you can turbo charge your meeting PREP, making the whole process faster, easier, and more robust.
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Modern directors ne...
I like the metaphor of âgetting in gearâ to refer to the topic of board engagement. Itâs a familiar phrase that means âstarting to deal with something in an effective way.â When a board of directors gets in gear, it starts to deal with the issues and concerns in front of it in an effective way. In other words, it makes an impact.Â
To stretch the metaphor just a bit further, letâs think of individual directors as the gears. When directors are appropriately engaged, they work together to change...
Is asking âwhy?â a good question for the boardroom?
A "why" question can work well during a board meeting because it can help clarify the reasoning behind decisions or actions that the organization has taken. A "why" question can also help uncover potential issues or challenges that may need to be addressed. However, itâs important to frame a âwhyâ question in a constructive way to avoid appearing confrontational.
In the heat of the moment, framing a question carefully is easier said than do...
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