By almost all measures, 2017 is expected to be a year of intense change. How will the dynamics of political, economic, technological, and cultural transitions affect your organization? We don’t have a crystal ball—but years of experience and frequent exposure to the boardroom offer us a vantage point on the issues many of you will be facing.

The key to your board’s success this year, and every year, will depend on having the right people and the right information to meet any challenge. What’s “right” has a lot to with the kinds of challenges you might face and the opportunities you shouldn’t miss. That’s where our list of eight hot topics comes in—these are the subjects we believe most boards will spend time on this year. We invite you to consider these themes, strike those that don’t apply and add specific items you think will be crucial for your organization this year. This type of thinking will give you a great jumpstart on your agenda for 2017! By organizing your thinking now, you’ll have a natural starting point for evaluating whether your board has the people and information it needs. And just like that you are starting the new year prepared for success.

1. Regulatory environment—The incoming presidential administration and single-party dominated Congress have advocated unraveling a number of regulations, including key provisions in Dodd-Frank, corporate tax structures, the Affordable Care Act, and more. A more porous regulatory environment, laced with so much uncertainty, puts the onus on boards to ensure that the company anticipates ambiguity, sets its priorities and lives by its values. Costs and loopholes may fluctuate – integrity should not. Boards must continue to set the tone at the top and we advocate that it be one of putting customers, employees, and long-term interests ahead of short-term business swings. 

2. Investor involvement—We’ve recently seen an enormous spike in activist investor campaigns and proxy contests. While much has been written about activists driving companies toward better financial outcomes, there is also evidence that activist demands often lead to short-term gains at the peril of long-term value. Activist incursions, even when they come with some level of validity, are time-consuming for executives, shift C-suite focus away from other priorities, and can subject the company to unwanted attention of all sorts. To preempt such a scenario, we suggest you think like activists: Identify shortcomings in financial performance or value creation, then propose actions to resolve the issues. Emphasize demonstrable progress in enhancing long-term value to thwart perceptions of inadequate returns on investment. If your company is targeted by activists, aim for a quick determination about whether to embrace or fight the demands. It’s best to avoid protracted battles that consume executives’ time, lead to negative press and often depress share value.

3. Cybersecurity—We surely don’t need to tell you that cybersecurity is one of today’s biggest threats—just witness the hacks into Yahoo, Sony, Target, and others. There have also been major distributed denial of service (DDOS) attacks, like the one that took down many major sites in October, and frequent incidents of IP theft at the hands of global cyber-thieves. Increasingly, when an organization is compromised by hackers, the board—as overseer of risk management—shares the accountability. So, it’s essential that directors stay up-to-date on the best practices for protecting customer and company data. At a minimum, boards must ensure that ongoing in-depth cybersecurity audits are conducted and protective measures taken. Many boards are adding high-level cybersecurity experts with deep experience at tech companies and/or the intelligence field, while raising the bar on in-house training, as many security breeches occur when employees fall for intruders’ ploys.

4. Data & analytics –“Big data” is rapidly changing the way all organizations do business. From predictive analytics that enable you (and your competitors) to spot new trends to data validation that identifies changing market sentiment, the impact of advances in analytics is vast. Let’s face it – the notion that data is a strategic asset is hardly novel anymore.  Moreover, without data, it’s very difficult to do analysis. And without analysis, it’s even trickier to get insights. So, the board needs to know: Does your organization have the resources it should to collect and analyze relevant data? Is there agreement on which data are most important for decision-making? Is there a process in place to ensure the validity of that data? Is the organization evaluating appropriate opportunities to monetize the data it collects? While you might not see an immediate impact this year, by 2018 we expect “big data” to affect most organizations. And regardless of what’s happening within yours, you should anticipate that your competitors and customers are already figuring out the implications for them.

5. Crisis preparedness—The business press is full of reminders that anything from international events to rogue employees (not to mention hackers and activist shareholders) can wreak havoc on an organization. One of a board’s greatest responsibilities is to ensure that management is thoughtful and proactive in thinking through worst-case scenarios and mitigating likely risks. Some disasters simply can’t be prevented, but a well-prepared team can have emergency processes in place to help the organization quickly regain customer and market confidence following any negative event. Keeping an updated Risk List is a good place to start. Once specific challenges are identified, the organization can design protocols and assign resources to activate as needed to get out in front of potential crises.

6. Strategy—In an unpredictable geo-political climate, a shifting regulatory and tax environment, and a rapidly evolving technology landscape, strategy will be more important than ever. Is the board confident in the organization’s underlying business (and investment) assumptions as well as its strategic focus? Does the organization have a framework in place for re-evaluating these assumptions on a regular basis and/or as markets change? Reaffirming the organization’s goals and market assessment will be important, followed by boards challenging executive teams to think through which strategies will be most effective in this evolving environment. Jumping to execution plans without explicitly confirming strategies periodically is fraught with risk.

7. Alignment—With an expected sea change in government policies and market reactions likely to create new opportunities and challenges for organizations, it is essential that boards and management are prepared to move quickly. It’s a lot easier to be nimble and fast-acting when decision-makers are in agreement about values, goals, strategies, tactics, and talent. A success-oriented board will take time now to insure the alignment of the CEO and all board members, aiming to bolster agreement, pinpoint friction and work through it ahead of upcoming decision-making.

8. Composition—Board diversity remains a critical topic. Last year saw increasing demand for greater representation of women and people of color in the boardroom, as well as apparent interest in a quota system similar to those in place in some European counties to ensure a certain percentage of women directors. Regardless of the likelihood of such a move Stateside, we encourage you to you stay ahead of the curve and embrace diversity for the best of all reasons—because it will make your board stronger. The most helpful and prescient boards tend to be the ones with the widest range of expertise, talent, and life experience. Diversity of perspective is key to thinking broadly and engaging in healthy debates about how to address difficulties or identify opportunities. With all the possible challenges to be presented by 2017, it would be smart to ensure you have the best possible team in place.

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This article is a part of Boardspan's Crystal Ball series.