What the Best Board Chairs Bring to the Table

By Kaitlin Quistgaard

While governance is a collective endeavor, the board chair plays an outsized role in shaping how effectively the board fulfills its mandate. The chair influences not only what gets discussed and when, but how productively directors engage, how disagreements are navigated, and the timeliness with which the board takes decisive action. Even for a high-functioning board, an effective chair can be the difference between perfunctory oversight and strategic value creation.

In today’s operating environment, marked by complex risks, shifting stakeholder expectations, and unrelenting pressure to perform, boards are asked to do more and are held more accountable. A skilled chair enables the board to rise to this challenge, fostering a culture of rigor, collaboration, and trust. By setting the right tone, prioritizing the relevant issues, and ensuring the board has effective processes in place to fulfill its responsibilities, the chair unlocks the board’s potential to add substantive value to the CEO and to the enterprise.

Given the importance of having a strong board leader, boards need to be thoughtful about the skills and traits that will make a difference. Here are seven essential qualities to look for or develop in potential leaders:

1.    Strategic Agenda-Setter for Effective Decision-making 

The meeting agenda is a blueprint for how the board engages, where it focuses, and what it ultimately influences. An effective chair shapes the agenda purposefully, guiding the board to spend its time and energy where it can add the most value. 

Typically, the chair will collaborate with the CEO, general counsel, and others to set the meeting agenda. While certain items, such as regulatory updates, committee reports, and formal approvals are non-negotiable, the chair plays a pivotal role in ensuring the board’s time is weighted toward what’s most consequential. Strategic issues that the board needs to be aware of or act on, including market shifts, competitive dynamics, capital allocation decisions, or inflection points in the company’s trajectory may require substantial discussion. 
 
Collaborating on the agenda provides the board chair and CEO an opportunity to align on priorities and to speak candidly about whether directors are appropriately informed and ready to weigh in on an issue, or whether management needs to provide more data and/or insights to support a productive discussion. A well-constructed agenda paves the way for the board to discharge its duties and make strategic contributions in a productive manner.

2.    Diplomatic and Decisive Facilitator

The best chairs are thoughtful and diplomatic facilitators. They draw out quiet voices, tactfully rein in loquacious or dominant speakers, and help the board find common ground. By managing airtime and dynamics with skill, they maintain momentum while preserving inclusivity. When tensions arise, as they inevitably will, a chair’s temperament matters. Ideally, the chair models composure and curiosity rather than showing frustration, and has a good sense for when to table an unproductive discussion and return to it later. 

Strong chairs also bring the self-awareness required to set aside their views, at least temporarily, to explore different perspectives with openness and curiosity. They model respect for different personalities, perspectives, and styles, and, when necessary, seek to ease friction behind the scenes. When conflicting views stand in the way of consensus, some chairs will seek to engage the whole board in identifying pathways toward resolution by asking questions like, How can we close the gap? What alternatives have we not considered? 

While directors need time and space to ask questions, share opinions, and work through complex issues, the chair also knows when the moment has arrived to drive toward resolution. That judgment, when to keep exploring a topic and when to push for a decision, comes with experience. Ideally, the chair learns to orchestrate deliberations with thoughtful efficiency, such that discussions are thorough without becoming paralyzing and result in timely decision-making.

3.    Collaborative Partner to the CEO  

The chair serves as a vital bridge to the CEO and it is critical that these two leaders build a good rapport that promotes mutual respect, a willingness to be candid with one another, and the ability to work together on challenging issues. Once a healthy, trusting relationship has been built, the chair can be a supportive sounding board in navigating complex or sensitive issues and can help the CEO to see and address gaps between their own perspective on an issue, which arises from a close-up view, and that of the board, which typically brings a broader view.  

Board leadership is also responsible for delivering constructive feedback and holding the CEO accountable for agreed-upon goals. Strong chairs guard against their own natural biases by relying on an independent third party to conduct the CEO’s annual review, which typically gathers feedback from all board members and direct reports to the CEO, then synthesizes the data collected into actionable insights. Delivering the findings to the CEO and discussing future goals (typically carried out by the compensation committee or HR committee chair in collaboration with the board chair), when carried out with professionalism and collegiality, offers an opportunity to deepen the relationship while providing appropriate oversight and guidance.

4.    Shaper of Board Culture

Board culture doesn’t just evolve. It is cultivated. And no one plays a greater role in shaping it than the chair. By modeling behaviors like thorough preparation, active listening, ethical decision-making, and respectful dissent, the chair sets the tone for how all directors engage in the boardroom. 

Seemingly small decisions, like how the board allocates time, how disagreements are handled, and even the schedule and location of meetings, can influence board culture. Chairs who intentionally create opportunities for board members to engage in casual conversations over meeting breaks and meals find that board members forge stronger relationships and develop greater trust. This leads to an environment where directors are more likely to raise uncomfortable questions, challenge assumptions, and bring their best judgment to the table.

The chair also shapes culture through the board’s composition. Working with the Nominating & Governance Committee, a chair can help ensure that the whole process of identifying, recruiting and onboarding new members emphasizes not only the expertise needed but also the values and expectations of the board. When the chair takes seriously the task of setting the tone from a potential board member’s first interaction through every board meeting, the culture becomes both a source of cohesion and a competitive advantage.

5.    Calm, Adept Leader in a Crisis

In today’s highly disruptive environment, all organizations need to be ready for the unexpected; having a chair whose experience and demeanor prepare them to provide calm, capable leadership in the face of novel challenges is key. Whether confronting the sudden departure of a CEO, a reputational crisis, or an external event that threatens business continuity, a quick-thinking, emotionally grounded, and insightful chair can set the tone for the board and the organization. Such a leader can ensure the board reacts swiftly, responsibly, and with a steady hand thereby providing reassurance to management, stakeholders, and employees alike. A savvy board leader may also ensure that crisis preparedness and scenario planning are built into the board’s annual calendar, providing regular opportunity to think through response mechanisms and get any necessary infrastructure in place before it’s needed.

6.    Leverages Institutional Knowledge

To lead the board effectively, most chairs bring a refined understanding of the organization and its market, as well as well-established relationships with fellow directors and the management team. Typically, a board member will be elevated into the chair role after having spent enough time on the board to develop a nuanced perspective that can enrich strategic discussions and strengthen the board’s ability to assess risks and opportunities. However, there are times when a newer board member is the best choice to lead the board; it is essential for such a chair to invest significant time in deepening their knowledge of the company, operating context, and sector dynamics, while also strengthening relationships with other board members, the CEO, and across the leadership team.

7.    Commitment and Capacity

No matter how skilled or experienced, a board chair can’t be successful if they don’t have the time and attention to devote to the role. The commitment required depends on the size, stage, and situation of the organization, but it is not unusual for a chair to have regular calls with the CEO and be consulted on significant matters on a relatively consistent basis. Suppose an organization is undertaking a major strategic reset, bringing on a new CEO,  embarking on an update of governance structures or board composition, or managing a crisis. In that case, the board chair may find themselves with a very full plate for a period.  
 
While the demands may ebb and flow,  they aren’t likely to conform to a schedule. Having a demanding operating role or other significant commitments that would limit one’s availability could create challenges. A high-performing chair needs the flexibility and temperament to stay closely attuned to the needs of the organization. 

About the Author

Kaitlin Quistgaard is Senior Vice President of Board Excellence at Boardspan. She advises boards on governance and performance with a focus on fine-tuning board practices to increase the opportunities for board members to make their greatest contributions. She also oversees Boardspan's CEO Review practice, bringing deep expertise to the process of evaluating performance and delivering constructive feedback to chief executives. Her work supports effective oversight and equips directors to lead through complexity and change.

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