Training on Strategies for Effective Board Membership

The goal of this program is to provide board members the abilities and information necessary to establish business plans that will benefit shareholders and give them a competitive edge. How should boards decide on leadership and make sure that these become the guidelines for creating effective execution strategies and metrics? In order to maintain organizational effectiveness, how should boards respond to changing demands for leadership in areas like board recruiting, board performance, succession planning, and conflict management between executives and board members? What questions do boards pose to the management group to reduce disagreements?

A new approach of viewing, addressing, and communicating strategy is required of today's boards of directors due to the evolving nature of governance in the global economic system.

Due in large part to the strategy's tight relationship to competitiveness and sustainability—which have grown more difficult to attain in today's chaotic and intensely competitive business environment—boards are now more concerned with it. To guarantee that the board performs its intended job, strategy capabilities have evolved into a core prerequisite for all directors. This criterion, which was formerly provided by a small number of directors, or by executives and consultants, now has more weight because to digitization. However, despite the fact that executives often play a significant role in formulating, executing, and assessing plans, the strategy cannot be left completely in the hands of executives.

Training Objectives

Participants on this Board Member training course will be able to:

• Deepen your understanding of the strategic challenges brought about by today’s global environment (from both internal and external perspectives).
• Develop your strategic competencies as a director
• Engage with topical issues such as the growing impact of digital technology on strategy and organizations and on the role of the board.
• Know what resources are required to ensure that strategies can and will be executed with discipline (and with reduced conflict).
• Practice formulating, implementing and evaluating strategies in a board environment.
• Review and explore how boards, in collaboration with executives, can play a role in anticipating and overcoming such challenges.

Who Can Attend?

This Board Member training course is designed for executive and non-executive board members. It is also useful for senior professionals who wish to become a board of director.

Course Outline

Module 1 - Your Impact as a Board Member

• An overview of a board member’s role, responsibilities, legal requirements and what is expected of you by the company
• Being a unitary board and demonstrating alignment
• Defining and communicating a compelling organizational vision and winning strategies
• Minimizing failure – reduce poor strategic choices and failure to execute the organization’s strategies and plans.
• Know the business and its key issues
• Know your board colleagues and who they are: their behaviour, style, agenda, interests
• Know yourself, be clear on your strength and weaknesses

Module 2 - First Steps

• Carrying out the four key tasks of the board
• Assessing how effective your board is
• Know the Chair and other board members
• Understand the personal commitment and input to make at board meetings and the board meeting process in general
• Understanding the executive team and other key people (including non-executives) to minimize risk and conflict or misunderstanding
• Be ready for board meetings

Module 3 - Creating Value

• Understanding minutes, board papers and reports
• Preparing questions in advance
• The pros and cons of pre-meetings and sub-committees
• Your expectations based on the previous meeting (and recorded actions)
• Board recruitment and on-boarding
• Boardroom succession planning

Module 4 - Staying Relevant and Credible

• Communicating board decisions and monitoring/scrutinizing results
• Managing the fate of the business when, at the start of the financial year the baton is handed to management, first-line supervisors and the employees who report to them to start executing the plan
• Ensuring the business meets its revenue targets and manages its cost base.
• What makes a great board?
• What does it take for the board to stay relevant and credible?
• Engaging stakeholders and employees in board meetings/sub-committees
• The work of sub-committees

Module 5 - Other Ways to Add Value

• Board members as a mentor and coach
• Being an ambassador
• Being a critical friend – challenging and asking tough questions
• Managing diversity
• Holding the board accountable (minutes, conflict of interest, follow up, actions, missing data)
• Keeping out of the way and not interfering (if the executive team knows what they are doing)