Showing up as a Board Chair

Holding the position of Board Chair is prestigious, yet one that comes with considerable responsibilities. Not only will chairing the Board impact the organisation now, but decisions the Board makes today will shape the organisation in the future.

The role of the chair requires:

1.      Know the business of the organisation

The Chair must have strong knowledge of the organisation’s operations, landscape, competitors, potential risks, and culture. Spending time within the business to see and experience how the organisation works helps to generate knowledge and reduces the over reliance on management reports. A lack of organisational knowledge leads to poor decision-making and impacts the Chair's relationship with operational staff and stakeholders.

2.      Strong governance knowledge

Strong governance knowledge is essential for effective Board leadership. Undertaking formal governance training before assuming a Chair role is critical to enable sound governance and decision-making.

 3.      Managing the Board

In collaboration with the Company Secretary and CEO, the Chair sets the annual work plan and agenda for board meetings. These items should be strategic or governance topics within the Board’s remit.

According to the Harvard Board Review, effective board meetings :

• Last 4-5 hours
• Include 5-8 agenda items
• Allocate 15% of time to management presentation

4.      Managing the CEO relationship.

The Chair is not the boss of the CEO, but they represent the Board’s relationship with the CEO.  Respect the boundaries between the CEO and Board roles and developing a productive, trusting relationship with the CEO is essential to supporting the organisation effectively.

5.      Serving as a steward of the organisation

The Chair ensures the Board maintains oversight of the organisation’s financial performance, strategic direction, operations, and risk management.  By setting a considered agenda and facilitating robust discussions and oversight of these activities, the Chair helps safeguard the organisation’s reputation and overall performance.  

6.      Cultivating the organisational culture

Organisational culture must come from the Board.  Importantly, the Chair set the tone for the organisation’s values and accepted behaviours. When the Board lacks strong cultural influence, separate cultures can emerge at the board and operational level, creating misalignment and confusion.

7.      Driving stakeholder engagement

Chairs must guide long-term strategy for engaging with stakeholders and incorporating stakeholder feedback into the organisation’s strategy. Engagement with stakeholders should not just limited to the Annual General Meeting.

8.      Manage shareholder/members' expectations.

The Board is accountable to shareholders/ members. Essentially, they are their bosses. The relationship between the Board and the shareholders/members should be critically important to the Chair. They cannot hide behind the CEO or management team in developing and managing these relationships.

9.      Emotional intelligence

While technical knowledge is essential, a Chair’s emotional intelligence (EQ) is just as important. The Chair’s EQ has the ability to enhance its effectiveness, especially in terms of its effectiveness in making decisions and establishing strong working relationships with colleagues, staff, and stakeholders.

Before nominating for a Chair role, an individual should consider:

• Motivations for assuming the position
• Governance skills and experience
• Knowledge of the organisation
• Time spent on the Board as a director
• Commitment to the time demands of the role
• Cultural alignment with the Board and organisation
• Access to a mentor if this is their first Chair position