One Minute Governance

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #34: Are we sure we use our experts well? It goes without saying that you can’t just stick a bunch of smart people in a room together and expect them to get along, let alone to make patient and well-informed decisions together. Things get even worse when those people aren’t just smart, but also have serious depth of expertise in areas that are directly related to the decisions that they need to make. Add to that the time scarcity and information asymmetry that are unavoidable characteristics of the work of a board and, well, we basically have the perfect illustration of why I think good governance is intentionally cultivating effective conditions for making decisions. If we’re not intentional, then our experts will be set up…not to fail, exactly, but certainly not to be as awesome as they could and should be. Just turning to an expert and saying “hey, you’re a pro at this, what do you think we should do?” is opening the door for the overconfidence effect that we talked about last week in episode 235. Just leaving things to chance and hoping everyone engages in the right way at the right time is, well, I suppose it’s the opposite of being intentional and also unlikely to succeed. It turns out that we need to understand not only the nature of each person’s expertise, but also a bit about their personality. We need to have a clear sense of what conversations we need to have (shout out episode 218). We need a sense of what insights management needs from the board. And once we know all that, we’re ready to flip today’s question a bit and ask: what do we need to do to make sure we use our experts well today?

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #33: What’s at the top of our expertise wish list? It’s been a couple of months since episode 207 where I urged you to consider what, specifically, makes a director great. I have asked *many* directors and executives that question and they have never, ever, answered by listing areas of expertise. And I think that makes sense, right? There’s no type or depth of expertise that, on its own, might make someone a great director. But that doesn’t mean we don’t need experts. In general, we’ve been conditioned to believe that the table stakes for boards include things like legal, audit, finance, strategy, executive experience, and so on. I could easily make a strong case for all of those. Without much more effort, I could make a case that they’re expendable. It’s also tempting to zoom in on emerging topics like AI or cybersecurity or DEI or modern slavery or whatever. Also all good options. And if we get an AI expert who’s also a great director who could possibly deny we’ve accomplished something important? But there are only so many seats at the table and we can’t tick every expertise box. And sometimes we might actually want TWO experts in the same area, right? So they can validate each other? I guess what I’m saying is that all expertise is optional, so if we’re resisting the urge to anchor to the status quo what would be at the top of our wish list? If we could add precisely one new area of expertise to our board, what would it be?

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #32: How might we empower the loudest directors to be better listeners? Having an ultra-confident expert on a board is a blessing and a curse. I suspect I don’t really have to explain what I mean – it’s pretty obvious. I mean, confident expertise, when the expertise is relevant to the work of the board, is a shortcut to managing information asymmetry and ensuring the board is able to be, y’know, useful. But there’s a very fine line between high confidence and OVERconfidence. Overconfidence is dangerous. I talked about this back in episode 119, and there’s tonnes of cool stuff you can read about the perverse relationship between expertise and confidence by Googling “overconfidence effect”. The other issue with confidence is that the most confident people on boards are the ones who will most readily participate, and will feel most uncomfortable with even the briefest breaks in action. But think about those of us in the room who have less expertise, but whose perspectives might still be critical to making sure we consider our decisions most thoughtfully. We might need a few more seconds or minutes to think. We might need a bit more information. We might not have the confidence or footing to challenge the experts in the room. The moment those experts start getting expert-y, the quieter among us will be more likely to just defer. And that’s a missed opportunity for everyone. Even our experts would be better off having more perspectives to consider. So, what approaches might you try to empower your experts to be listeners first?

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #31: how might we empower our quietest directors to make an impact? There’s a surprisingly common and patently absurd notion in the world of boards and corporate governance. It goes something like this: when we recruit a new director, we don’t really expect them to contribute much in the first year – mostly we want them to listen and learn. Most of you OMG listeners will be familiar with this position, and already know that it’s kinda dumb. Because here’s the thing: board seats are scarce. Precious, even. Why the heck would you be OK with one of those seats being filled with someone who’s not empowered to engage, participate and contribute on equal footing with the rest of the board? A much less dumb approach to a new director would be to ask yourself, “what would it take for this new director to participate at 100% from day 1, and how are we going to do our best to make sure that it’ll happen?” Now think about the quietest director at the table, whether they’re new or not. Most of the boards I meet are sitting there wishing that director would say more and participate more willingly. Well, what would it take for that director to participate more, and how are you going to do your best to make it happen. Spoiler alert: just pointing your finger at them and asking them to participate isn’t going to get it done. Don’t be lazy. Do the work.

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #30: How many of us wish our work were more spontaneous? I admitted in the last episode – to nobody’s surprise, I imagine – that I generally prefer the unpredictable over the predictable. That doesn’t – and shouldn’t – mean that anyone else should feel the same way. But it does mean that in a generally super-structured environment like a board meeting, one of two things is happening. One, I am trying my best to be useful, but am never really able to give my best. Two, I am subtly or unsubtly pushing for cool stuff to happen, thereby annoying the structure-preferring people in the room. And they’re right to be annoyed! If the meeting were in a spontaneous and experimental mode, our positions would be reversed. They’d be less useful than they could be and probably subtly struggling to rein in the chaos. But this is actually a good explanation for why we generally struggle to get the best out of everyone at the same time. The fact is that no one approach or model will be well-suited to the wide range of personalities and preferences in the room. And for what it’s worth I can *guarantee* that there is a wide range of personalities and preferences among your board members and executives. Do I have a brilliant suggestion to address this challenge? No. But again, you can’t solve a problem that you can’t describe. So ask the question!

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #29: how many of us wish our work were more structured? Ever notice how lots of people get uncomfortable the moment things get unpredictable? It’s both normal and understandable. And thankfully, most boards and executives approach their work together in a pretty structured and predictable way. But that can make it even more jarring when something unexpected happens, or when someone in the room starts suggesting (or insisting) that we try something new. Even though I personally feel more comfortable in situations that lean toward the unpredictable – at least most of the time – I think it’s obvious that there’s nothing right or wrong about preferring structure. And I bet you can picture how someone’s preference for structure and predictability might affect the way that they engage in discussions at a board meeting. As long as we’re sticking pretty close to the scheduled topics and not introducing any significant new information, they’re right at home. But instead of making an assumption that anyone – or everyone – is happy with the balance we have, why not ask? What if it turns out all of us would prefer to increase the predictability of our meetings? Wouldn’t that be an important bit of information?

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #28: How many of us would benefit from an occasional change in scenery? In episodes 192 and 193 of OMG I talked about the importance of breaks and physical movement. These are not trivial nice to haves – they are critical to making sure that people are cognitively engaged and comfortable – both of which we can all agree are important to board effectiveness. Speaking of trivial, it’s maybe a bit too easy to trivialize breaks and think of them just in terms of gaps in our agendas for people to do with what they please. Mostly to grab a coffee and get caught up on email for 15 minutes. But we all know that that’s no break at all. It’s like if I giftwrapped your overflowing work phone and presented it to you like the greatest gift in the world. No, breaks are different from simple agenda items. If you could design the ideal break – one with no constraints, anything is on the table – what would it look like? We might all come up with something different, but I suspect almost everyone’s dream break would include a change in scenery. Maybe you’re out on a walk or sitting on the beach or up on a roof or on your bike or whatever. And the thing about a change in scenery is that you don’t even need a break to get it done. You could hold different parts of your board meeting in different rooms or have a quick walk and talk or even just play musical chairs. So, how many of us would benefit from an occasional change in scenery?

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #27: How many of us would like our board meetings to feel more “creative”? As any casual OMG listener will already know, I spend a lot of time encouraging corporate directors and senior executives to do things that are outside of the range of normal behaviours in boardrooms. First off, I’d like to argue that the range of normal behaviours in boardrooms is way too narrow and doesn’t work very well. But second, I am compelled to admit that it can be hard to find the confidence to try things that literally nobody else has ever tried, even when everything that everyone *has* tried doesn’t work. To that end, I often get challenged by my clients and students on that exact point, usually in the form of “that all sounds fine, Matt, but how do you expect me to go into my boardroom and actually do this stuff?” My initial response often involves the subject of today’s episode. I will look around the room and say, “OK, raise your hand if, in general, you would like your board meetings to feel more creative, whatever that means to you?” Every time I’ve asked this question, more than three quarters of the people in the room raise their hand. And what I’m try: first, that we are all open to trying new things and as a result you probably won’t face as much resistance as you think. Second, just asking a show of hands question requires basically no permission, gets you immediate and valuable information, and in itself injects a bit of active and creative engagement into the flow of a meeting. Creativity doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated or transformative. But it does have to push you outside the range of normal behaviour.

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #26: How might subtraction help to solve our stickiest issues? Back in episode 189, I talked about the amazing work by Leidy Klotz and others on a cognitive bias called “subtraction neglect”. Basically, subtraction neglect describes that our brains find it really easy to consider solutions to problems that involve adding stuff and really hard to think of solutions that involve taking things away. Unlike most cognitive biases, we can short circuit subtraction neglect just by asking “how might we solve this problem through subtraction?” So that’s what I’m urging you to do in today’s episode. Think of a typical board meeting – and I don’t care if your meetings are one hour long or three days long – I think it’s safe to assume that you discuss approximately two important problems per hour. Maybe more, maybe less, but two-ish on average. Every single one of those problems will be compromised by subtraction neglect. Even more important are the problems that you’ve put up with forever – maybe you even assume they *can’t* be solved. Things like information overload or getting stuck in the weeds or whatever. Instinctively, we can see that trying to solve those problems through addition could sorta work, but will probably unintentionally make things a bit worse. But if we get into the habit of asking “how might we solve this problem through subtraction?” We’re opening ourselves to a whole new world of ideas.

This season, every episode of OMG focuses on a question that directors really need to answer.

OMG is written, produced, narrated and scored by Matt Fullbrook.

TRANSCRIPT:

Question #25: Is our pain really necessary? In the previous episode, I admitted that work sometimes sucks, and the work of a board is no different. Despite the fact that we can never completely avoid or alleviate the pain of board work, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. So now that you’ve identified and described your pain points, the next question is whether we really have to suffer, or if there might be a different path. The fact is that almost everything that boards do is optional. In other words, the list of specific activities that a board *must* perform is short. Now, there’s tonnes of optional stuff that boards *should* do to make sure that their butts are covered and that they feel confident they’ve discharged their duties. But even here, the range of approaches that boards take to discharging their duties is strangely narrow. Making matters worse, boards have a tendency to want to model themselves after each other. Whenever they need to do something new or different, the first question is “well, what are other boards doing?” The answer, I’m afraid, is “nothing very interesting.” What I’m getting at is that a lot of your pain might be unnecessary, but you’ll never find out if you’re not open to ditching some of the optional stuff and resisting the urge to seek validation from other boards. As long as you’re complying with laws and regulations, I think it’s worth experimenting with novel approaches to pain relief.