Director’s Domain

September 22, 2022 - People power. Organizations have long recognized that people, as in employees, make (or break) a successful business. Since the start of the pandemic and the Great Resignation, boards have increased their focus on workforce issues and are recruiting more HR talent to help them do so. HR execs claim 300% more public company boards seats today than they did just five years ago. Meanwhile, legal minds address the conservative attacks on corporate allegiance to ESG issues, arguing that companies can and should adopt sustainability measures in support of long-term shareholder value. In other news, a conservative activist investor pressures Apple and Disney to downgrade their ESG initiatives and stay out of politics. Read On

September 15, 2022 - Succession. You’ve probably heard that the HBO show of that name won best drama at the Emmy Awards this week for its portrayal of the turmoil around the succession plans for a family-owned media dynasty. A sign of the times? With CEO exits on the rise, there has never been more focus on succession planning and the board’s role in ensuring its organization has a well-considered plan in place. Among recent management shakeups, Peloton is in the news as its co-founder, executive chairman and former long-time CEO John Foley steps down alongside other executives as current CEO Barry McCarthy radically restructures the ailing fitness company. In other news, Twitter shareholders vote to approve Elon Musk’s takeover bid, even as Musk ties to back out and a former executive at the social media company appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee to discuss his claims that Twitter has not deployed adequate security for users. Meanwhile, several articles point to the importance of true diversity at the board level as a foundation for ESG. Read On

September 8, 2022 - ESG flare up. Shareholder proposals seeking to derail ESG efforts are growing more prolific and an observer says believers in science and climate risk should take the attacks seriously and counter them. Meanwhile, more than half of FTSE 100 companies now have a board-level ESG committee. In other news, Starbucks names a new CEO. Bed Bath & Beyond is faced with tragedy and evolving business operational concerns. BlackRock gets tough on over-boarded directors. And all signs point to boards getting closer to the Chief Information Security Officer, as the board’s cyber oversight responsibilities grow more significant. Read On

September 1, 2022 - Expedited evolution. More and more we see evidence that investors, regulators, employees and other constituents have come to appreciate the work of the board. They aren’t shy about holding boards accountable when things go wrong—and increasingly they are interested in how to help make things go right. It’s not surprising then to see this week’s calls for boards to be more transparent about board composition strategy and update their board refreshment policies. Board governance expectations are evolving, and fast! Meanwhile, layoffs and hiring freezes are trending as companies respond to inflation and a rapidly changing market. At retail, fast food, and warehouse and delivery companies unionization is also on the rise. In other news, Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s legal team seeks a delay in the lawsuit brought by Twitter to force him to complete his acquisition of the company, citing new evidence from a whistleblower complaint about security practices, even as both sides issues subpoenas to a who’s who of the Silicon Valley elite. Read On

August 25, 2022 - ESG backlash? As boards embrace ESG and discuss what it means for their particular organization to appropriately address Environmental, Social and Governance concerns, some of the biggest proponents of corporate commitment to ESG initiatives are receiving a different message from legislators and regulators in energy-rich states. Several states have targeted asset managers like BlackRock that play an outsize role in focusing corporate attention on greater board diversity, lower emissions, and other ESG initiatives. Texas now bans state pension funds from working with financial firms that “boycott” fossil fuels, while Florida blocks state entities from investment strategies that value other criteria above ROI. Meanwhile, the Twitter acquisition drama continues as Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s legal team subpoenas former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey for potential information on spam accounts, while current Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal pushes back against a whistleblower claim about security practices that could bolster Musk’s case. CEO succession planning is in the news, with stats that reveal some 49% of boards have not identified an internal successor; the good news is that the article (below) offers some good advice for ensuring your board has the information needed for successful succession planning. Read On