A board’s role in corporate governance includes overseeing and providing advice to the corporation to ensure it operates lawfully, fairly and in its shareholders and stakeholders’ best interest. Boards perform this function by operating independently of company management and the day-to-day activities. The board makes sure that the company’s plans for strategic planning comply with its legal, ethical and financial obligations. It also determines the major threats to the company and the best ways to manage these risks, delegating the responsibility for managing data privacy in cloud computing some of these tasks to committees.
Many boards have a chair who is accountable for facilitating meetings, keeping an appropriate atmosphere and setting the agenda. The chair’s other responsibilities are to spark discussion and debate and to make sure that the most important issues are given adequate attention. Board secretaries also play a crucial role in planning board meetings and creating the agenda.
Boards are also more involved in issues like sustainability as well as mergers and acquisitions, the development of talent and culture and strategy and risk management. They are also expected to put a an intense focus on ESG (environmental social and governance) aspects that are becoming critical to investors and consumers alike.
To be efficient, a board needs to have the proper structure and have members who possess a mix of expertise, skills, and knowledge. It is important that the members of the board have a deep understanding of the various industries and sectors in which the companies operate. This is essential to their ability to challenge and assist management in bringing the company’s policies in line with changing consumer and investor expectations.