Data, Disruption, and the Boardroom with David Kenny

How do you govern when disruption is constant, data is overwhelming, and traditional playbooks no longer apply? What’s the board’s role in ensuring the data behind key decisions is trustworthy—and that emerging technologies like AI are applied with purpose and accountability?

In this timely conversation, David Kenny, Executive Chairman of Nielsen, joins Abby Adlerman, CEO of Boardspan, to explore the evolving oversight landscape. Drawing on his experience across data, media, and technology, David offers a peer-level perspective on the questions boards may want to raise—and the judgment they’ll need to apply—in this next era of governance.

Watch the full discussion for prompts and reflections on:

• Why internal data standards are becoming essential—and how to think about them
• How to probe AI initiatives without needing to be a technologist
• Where board oversight can add value as reasoning models and data-driven decisions scale
• How to stay focused when the pace of change is high and the facts keep shifting
• What it means to stay curious, steady, and strategic—when certainty is in short supply

This is not a checklist—it’s a conversation designed to prompt thoughtful, forward-looking dialogue in the boardroom.