Very privileged to be asked to contribute to two publications in the company of very respected subject matter experts.
- Effective Directors: The Right Questions to ask
- Corporate Governance 3.0: An international perspective on modern governance and three levels of history and maturity
The title of the one book is very telling, “Questions to ask”, and should provide directors with an easy to access checklist to assist them during Board meetings.
As a little taster . . .
A course delegate once told me:
“Jean,its fine for you to ask the questions. As a non finance person I am petrified of the answers!” Fair point.
My advice here is not to let technical experts (and I would include CFO’s/FD’s in that list) brush you off. For example, if one answer to your question is “It is for tax reasons”, do not let them off the hook. Seek more explanations and perhaps simplifications. Another benefit of that approach is that you get into their heads, meaning, they will know that you do not accept such brevity. And, as a consequence, you are constantly raising the standards of the Board which cannot be a bad thing!