Strengthening Board Roles Without Compromising Trust

Surprises are great for birthdays, not board meetings. Your board meeting can be a game changer. Your communication makes all the difference. Board meetings don't have to be stressful. → Communication is key. Many founders feel anxious about board meetings. They prepare for hours, fearing the worst. This stress often comes from a lack of communication with board members between meetings. → No surprises is the goal. Your main job is to keep your board informed. Share both the good and the bad. Full transparency is crucial. Many think they should only share positive news. This is a mistake. When you share everything, your board can help you. → Engage between meetings. You need to talk with your board often. Share updates and insights. Make sure they have all the information they need. This way, when you meet, it’s not just a report. It’s a discussion on how to move forward. → Prepare smart, not hard. Stop wasting time on endless reports. Focus on what matters. Provide the information your board needs to be ready. This will make your meetings more productive. → Build a strong relationship. Trust is built on communication. When your board feels informed, they will be more supportive. Create an environment where everyone can share freely. This leads to better decisions. In each meeting, aim for clarity and collaboration. Communicate openly. This way, you reduce stress. You increase effectiveness. You create a stronger board. Be a founder who values communication. You will not just survive board meetings. You will thrive.

Want Board Trust? Stop Sounding Smart and Start Being Clear You don’t earn board trust by showing off how much you know. You earn it by making sure they understand what matters. I’ve seen CFOs deliver technically flawless reports that went nowhere. Because no one in the room could answer the only question that counts: “So what?” Simplicity Isn’t a Style Choice. It’s a leadership skill. The more complex the sector: aged care, NDIS, not-for-profit; the more value you create by simplifying the signal. Boards don’t want a PhD in funding models. They want to know: 1. What’s working? 2. What’s about to break? 3. Where should we double down? You can’t get there by flooding them with metrics. You get there by framing the issue with sharp insight and straightforward language. Here’s What High-Trust CFOs Do Differently 1. They don’t report everything. They report what moves the business. Every number earns its place. Everything else goes. 2. They give context, not just commentary. “We’re under budget” means nothing without risk, impact, and next steps. 3. They never let compliance bury strategy. They keep the organization safe without making safety the ceiling. Want Influence? Stop Hiding Behind Complexity. Boards trust CFOs who help them think clearly under pressure. Who reduce risk and noise. Who turn 60-page packs into 3-slide conversations that actually move decisions forward. Simplicity is not dumbing it down. It’s proving you’ve mastered it. Try This Pick one metric from your last board report. Ask: “If a director read this and nothing else, would they know what to do?” If not, reframe it. You’re not there to impress. You’re there to guide. CFOs, when was the last time simplifying a report changed the room? Let’s hear it. Because simplicity builds trust, and trust drives everything. #CFOLeadership #BoardTrust #FinancialSimplicity #ExecutiveFinance #LinkedInSeries

Corporate governance is not for the faint-hearted. It requires discipline, independence of thought, and a clear separation of roles. One principle that often gets overlooked but makes a huge difference is that the Board Chair should not sit on any board committees. This is because the Chair plays a crucial role in maintaining a broad and independent perspective when committee reports and recommendations are presented to the full board. If the Chair has already been part of the committee discussions, it becomes harder to offer an objective view or challenge the thinking with fresh eyes. From my experience, when the Board Chair is a member of a committee, it changes the dynamics. Other committee members tend to defer to the Chair, whether consciously or not. They look to the Chair for direction, approval, or validation, especially in complex or sensitive discussions. This undermines the principle of collective responsibility and weakens the quality of committee deliberations. The Chair's role is to lead the board, not to dominate committee work or influence outcomes too early in the process. Some organisations make an exception by allowing the Board Chair to sit on or even chair the Nominations Committee, especially when it’s separate from the Human Resources (HR) Committee. However, there’s one important boundary: if the committee is discussing the appointment of a new Board Chair, the current Chair should recuse themselves from that part of the process. It’s a small but powerful rule that protects fairness, transparency, and trust in board processes. In governance, it’s often these simple, thoughtful guardrails that make the difference between good and great leadership. Industrial Psychology Consultants (Pvt) Ltd

50% of boards believe they are helpful to their CEO. Yet only 25% of CEOs agree. That is a confidence gap worth addressing. These numbers come from recent research from Spencer Stuart illustrating a quiet disconnect between what boards believe they are offering and what CEOs feel they are receiving. Too often, boards see their role primarily as oversight: evaluating strategy, ensuring performance, and maintaining accountability. These are essential duties, but they are not the whole story. If boards are to support CEOs effectively, both parties need to redefine the relationship. From the CEO’s side, that begins with reflection: Do I have the right people around the table to help me lead the business forward today? The answer demands a clear-eyed assessment of each board member’s current relevance, availability, and contributions, followed by the courage to refresh the board as conditions evolve. It also requires intentionality. CEOs need to define when and where they want engagement - especially earlier in the process, where the board can help shape and sharpen the thinking. Doing so fosters co-ownership, not just review. Finally, the most effective CEOs invite their boards to be part of the journey. They do not treat the board as a jury handing down a verdict, but as a partner in achieving success…or confronting failure. That change in mindset is subtle but impactful. Boards can offer much more than approval or critique. But they need to be brought in early, engaged with clarity, and built with purpose.

In a world defined by extraordinary disruption, the true differentiator for organisations is resilience, and that strength can only be co-created when Boards and management work in alignment.   The latest Deloitte Global Boardroom and CEO Program survey, covering nearly 750 board members and C-suite executives worldwide, highlights a shift towards a new model of collaboration between boards and leaders. Key takeaways: 1. Regularly evaluate board composition to ensure readiness for emerging challenges 2. Strengthen board–C-suite dynamics through trust and transparency 3. Co-create agenda that enables deeper, more strategic discussions 4. Create safe spaces for open, honest dialogue 5. Recognise that effective board leadership today demands greater time, engagement, and foresight   The most resilient boards look beyond navigating uncertainty; they define the path forward. Resilience is no longer about bouncing back; it’s about moving ahead with purpose and innovation. Read more on how boards and management can co-create resilience: https://lnkd.in/dNBbMM5y #BoardroomProgram #Governance #Resilience Deepti Berera  

When it comes to boards and executive teams, "trust" is an incredibly important aspect of how they work together. In the case of high-performing boards and executive teams, trust is the critical factor that allows them to stretch and get the best out of each other. In the case of in-effective and dysfunctional boards, trust becomes blind and boards abandon their critical challenge/oversight role. The appalling UK Post Office scandal is a very clear example of an experienced board failing at every level in terms of their oversight and challenge due to "blind trust in the executive team" and shocking levels of complacency. In our board evaluation work, when we see the very best boards and executive teams in action, trust is used to ensure; 1. Absolute clarity on all board directors and executive's role, responsibilities and commitments to each other. 2. The highest levels of intelligent robust challenge, oversight and the board holding the executive team's feet to the fire on their performance, commitments, priorities and behaviours. 3. Absolute honesty and a consistent ability to face up to and deal with "the elephants in the room". 4. Board directors continually on their toes, irrespective of how well the organisation is performing, with high levels of curiosity and meticulous preparation for board/committee meetings. In our board dispute mediation work, we see the sharp end of the devastating consequences of trust breaking down between the board and executive team. This rarely happens overnight and is usually an accumulation of multiple "trust fractures" over time. In the following article, I explore the five components of the trust equation of a board. https://lnkd.in/eTWM4R7R