File photo
Guest columnist Ward Graffam was the founding chairman of the Maine International Trade Center and is former chairman and CEO of Unum UK.
Updated: June 11, 2021
How To
How to strengthen your board and improve your competitive edge
By Ward Graffam
A good board can provide a competitive advantage to your business.
Companies need to periodically evaluate what skills they need on their board. A properly constructed and informed board can become a competitive advantage for the company. In order to evaluate that potential, one key question for management is whether the organization has a “skills inventory” of its key personnel and of its board members. That inventory is important for management to understand the skills of the various key executives and board members and whether those skills are adequate to achieve its mission.
- Vetting qualifications: As part of the skills inventory process you should request a CV or resume of your potential board members before they join the board. Not only does that help in vetting the qualifications of any potential board members and in matching up those qualifications with the organizations’ needs, it also provides the basis for a well thought out summary of those qualifications for use on your organizations’ website. A brief description of the board member, their background and their current expertise serves several purposes. First, it is an excellent marketing piece to show-case the depth of expertise at the board level and available to management. Second, it shows the types of experience valued by management and investors. Finally, it becomes an easy vehicle to categorize and access those skills.
- Understanding the board member’s role: Board members need a clear understanding of their role. A board orientation program helps put those roles in context. Many board members become so involved in the details of the business that they actually become disruptive of the process. A board members’ job is not to assume management’s role of running the business — that is why you hired a CEO. Rather, part of their job is to give advice on policy and strategic issues that have an overarching impact on the business. Without a clear understanding of those roles, valuable management time can be wasted debating conflicting views of how particular decisions should be handled.
- The right questions: Technology is undoubtedly important to your company. Let’s assume this area is critical for the company. Is any board member really familiar with the discipline? IT can be problematic for a company, particularly when its technology is being changed. A board member is not responsible for the details of technology issues, but it can be helpful if he or she has enough background to ask the right questions.
- Strategic insights: Your board and their experience can be extremely helpful in the strategic planning process. I do not necessarily mean helpful as part of developing the organization’s strategic plan itself — that is management’s job. Rather, your board can provide valuable insights and critique of the strategic plan once it is developed and can test it against the organization’s vision, mission and key objectives before it is implemented.
The right board members can, indeed, provide your organization with a competitive advantage.
Ward Graffam was the founding chairman of the Maine International Trade Center, and served as chairman and CEO of UNUM UK and chairman of FINEOS in Dublin. He can be reached at wgraffam@aol.com.
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments