The Board Perspective Issue Number 1
August 2016

The Board Perspective - Number 1

A collection of McKinsey insights focusing on boards of directors

The Role of the Board

Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Building a forward-looking board

– Directors should spend a greater share of their time shaping an agenda for the future.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

High-performing boards: What’s on their agenda?

– Directors report that they have a greater impact as they move beyond the basics.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Tapping the strategic potential of boards

– Too many boards just review and approve strategy. Three questions can help them—and executives—begin to do better.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Modernizing the board’s role in M&A 

– Active involvement can help companies capture more value—and develop a competitive advantage in deal making.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

CEO succession starts with developing your leaders

– Focusing on future priorities and debiasing decisions help, too.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Adapting your board to the digital age

– Many directors are feeling outmatched by the ferocity of changing technology, emerging risks, and new competitors. Here are four ways to get boards in the game.
Article

Five questions boards should ask about IT in a digital world

– CIOs, business executives, and board directors need a shared language to discuss IT performance in a fast-changing environment. Here’s a framework for those conversations.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Engaging boards on the future of marketing

– At many companies, the whole organization is becoming more responsible for customer engagement. A few are extending this thinking to the boardroom.

Board Structure and Foundations

Article - McKinsey Quarterly

How to choose the right nonexecutive board leader

– It’s time to use a structured process for selecting the nonexecutive leader of the board. Defining the role is a good start.
Article - PDF

Board directors and experience: A lesson from private equity

– Independent directors contribute an outside perspective to governance, but analysis of private-equity firms suggests they need relevant managerial expertise too.
Article

Boards: When best practice isn’t enough

– Many boards have improved their structures and processes. But to become truly effective stewards of their companies, they must also instill the right mind-set and boardroom dynamics.

Board Effectiveness

Survey

Toward a value-creating board

– The amount of time board directors spend on their work and commit to strategy is rising. But in a new survey, few respondents rate their boards as effective at most tasks or report good feedback or training practices.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Changing the nature of board engagement

– Five tips for directors and CEOs striving to make the most of their limited time.
Interview

Are you getting all you can from your board of directors?

– Veteran director David Beatty finds many boards wanting—and considers how to improve them.

Related

The Board Perspective - Number 2

– A collection of McKinsey insights focusing on boards of directors.