The need for effective leadership in the Boardroom and at the top table has never been greater. As business faces unprecedented challenge so Boards become acutely aware of the importance of learning. There are no ready templates and the businesses that succeed will be those that most successfully fuse the commercial imperative with doing the right thing for society and the environment. This is the new licence to operate and the business of the future. Boards need to be on the front foot. Fidelio’s focus is building Boards “fit for the future”. Against this backdrop we recently hosted the 8th iteration of the “A Seat at the Table” Board development programme with a close focus on Board learning for a profoundly disrupted world. Our modules included:
Revisiting Governance
Governance of Search
Diversity & Technology
The Role of the Board and the Environment
Board Trust, Integrity and Data
The Role of the Chair in Building the Board
Fidelio wove a thread of Board effectiveness and Board composition through the programme ensuring that participants benefited from practical checklists for the Board challenges ahead. One advantage of a virtual format was being able to welcome participants from Africa, Europe, the UK and the US. To help us explore effective governance we were joined by highly experienced contributors:
Beatriz Araujo, Partner, Baker McKenzie; Expert on Governance Projects, WEF
Cyrus Ardalan, Chair, Citigroup Global Markets Ltd & OakNorth Bank
Lynda Baker Funke, Partner, Fidelio Partners, Head of Diversity
Ann Cairns, Executive Vice Chair, Mastercard; Global co-Chair, 30% Club; Member, UK Government’s AI Council; Chair, ICE Clear Europe & Financial Alliance for Women
Margaret Casely-Hayford, Chair, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre; Chancellor, Coventry University; Director, Co-op; Advisory Board Chair, Ultra Education
Stephen Cheetham, Senior Consultant, Fidelio Partners
Mark Cumberlege, Founding Partner, Fidelio Partners
Francesca Ecsery, NED, Marshall Motor Holdings plc, F&C Investment Trust, Air France & Association of Investment Companies
Karen Green, Non-Executive Director, Phoenix Group Holdings plc & Admiral Group plc
Emma Howard Boyd, Chair, Environment Agency; NED, Menhaden; Board Member, Accounting for Sustainability
Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation & Head of the Office for Statistics Regulation, UK Statistics Authority
Gillian Karran-Cumberlege, Founding Partner & Head of Chair Advisory, Fidelio Partners; Board Member, Chapter Zero
Alistair Stranack, Partner, Fidelio Partners, Head of Strategy
Sam Tymms, Managing Director, Promontory Financial Group; Risk Committee Chair, DWF
For further insight into the practical learnings of Fidelio's two-day Board learning programme please click here.