Board effectiveness is a key dimension of good governance. How recently have you reviewed your performance within and outside of the Board room? Do you have the assurance you need to mitigate and manage the key risks to your organisation’s strategic objectives?

Are you satisfied that you have the requisite blend of skills and experience on the Board to ensure that your decision-making can optimise opportunities as well as handle the threats that face your business in a volatile operating environment.

Increasing regulatory, financial, and reputational pressures face many organisations in the UK across all industries and sectors. It can be tempting for boards to narrow their focus and increase scrutiny on executive performance and results, rather than stepping back and reviewing their own performance and effectiveness.

Consider enhancing your effectiveness through Board development if you recognise that some unhelpful habits are creeping in:

• Board discussions too readily fall into ‘group think’ with insufficient scrutiny of key issues and risks
• The Board focuses on operational detail rather than on strategic issues and decision-making
• The Board is too passive and does not test or challenge assurance in any depth

Instead cement some of the hallmarks of successful boards:

• A balanced focus between looking in to examine internal performance and looking out to understand the changing external environment
• The focus of the Board is shaped by an explicit system of assurance and a well-designed board business cycle
• Discussion is characterised by the traits identified by Higgs (2003) as supporting good governance – question intelligently, debate constructively, challenge rigorously, decide dispassionately.