Serving on an organisation’s board of directors is a highly fulfilling role providing a significant opportunity to add value to the organisation and play a critical role in its sustainable growth and success.
However, in the complex dynamic world we live in today, serving on a board of a directors has never been more challenging and demanding. Whether it is a large corporate stock-market listed company board, a family business board, public sector or non-profit board, the expectations of shareholders and stakeholders have never been greater.
This is reflected in both the relentless increase in responsibilities, legal and fiduciary duties of board directors as well the bright spotlight on the behaviours and actions of boards, directors and the standards of corporate governance across the world.
A modern boardroom is a highly complex environment that all directors, both highly experienced and directors taking on their first role, are finding increasingly difficult to navigate and be successful in. While boardrooms have always had a complex mix of personalities and tensions, the role of an individual board director has expanded considerably. A modern board director is expected to combine the highest levels of oversight, challenge, debate and holding the executive team’s “feet to the fire” on their performance, decision-making and behaviours, with adding significant value to the executive team and organisation. In addition to the mix of professional, general and sector-specific experience that a board director is expected to bring, soft-skills in key areas like emotional intelligence, empathy for customers/employees and an ability to contribute in areas like culture and strategy, are increasingly important.
One of the areas in-experienced board directors find particularly challenging is the area of board dynamics and in the “cauldron of the boardroom” to navigate the complex tensions and conflicts that permeate quite a number of boardrooms. All board directors are being challenged to thread a very delicate path of balancing shareholder and stakeholders’ perspectives while continuing “to do the right thing” in terms of the highest levels of behaviours, ethics and values. Every board director today needs to demonstrate a capacity to learn and embrace key areas like Environment, Social and Governance (ESG), artificial intelligence and cyber-security while ensuring they have a very current understanding of the sector the organisation is operating in, the challenging headwinds, geo-political and competitive forces that are impacting on their organisation.
The board directors who will thrive in the coming years will be those who are “lifelong learners”, continually growing their skillset, judgement, adding significant value to their organisation and embracing the continuously evolving role of directors and the boards they serve on.
To equip current and aspiring board directors with the critical knowledge, skills, and insights needed to navigate today’s complex boardroom landscape, explore TheBoardroom Africa’s Certificate in Modern Board Direction.
About the author
KIERAN MOYNIHAN
CMBD, Programme Faculty
Kieran is the Managing Partner of Board Excellence, a leading international board consulting practice, specialising in board evaluations, operating across over 35 countries. Kieran has over 25 years of experience serving on boards as a CEO & Executive Director, Non-Executive Director and Board Chair. Kieran is an internationally-recognised thought leader in the area of board dynamics, effectiveness, performance and corporate governance. He is a regular contributor to leading international board publications and has developed ground-breaking new approaches to optimising the “people equation of the board”, the partnership between executive and non-executive board members and enabling the board to excel as a high-performing team. Board Excellence have delivered board evaluations, training and board/governance advisory services to board across the African continent including Morocco, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Lesotho and South Africa, across the corporate, private company, public and non-profit sectors.
