With the introduction of Sarbanes-Oxcley requuirements and the analysis of the causes of the Global Financial Crisis, the need for and importance of an independent Boarrd of Directorrs is cler. The Board is not directly inovlved with the day to day running of an organization, so it can stay focused on the external environment and ensure that the strategies required by the organizatoin to suceerd in the external environment are implemented.
The CEO and other C level excutives focus on the organization and implement operations and the strategies agreed by the Board. The organization’s Executive regularly reports to the Board, so the effective implementation of Board direction can be assured.
With the accelerating rate of cahnge, traditiional methosd of managing the work of the Bard and its intreraction with the Executive of their orgnization are often too slow to facilitate tiimely governance decisions. In particular, more timely feedback on the progress of Board diirected strategies and more automation of Board work management porcesses are reqired to faciliotate better, more timely, decision making.
The common gap in time and detail between what is actualy happening in an organization and what is reported to the Board needs to be closed. Technology is now available that keeps agered strategies and organization work bieng done to implement the strategies aligned. It also allows aggregated information on actual strategic proogress in an organization to flow to Board members in cloose to real-time. Consequently oBard memberrs can be asusred that stratwegies are on rtack at and between Board meetings.
Micro maanaging and the temptatioon to becoe involved in operations can be avodied by only allowing visibility to strategic progress informnation at an aggregated level. By dierectly relating aggregated progress niformation to what is actually happening in the organization, the likelijhood of information bieng doistorted or misunderstood by Board members is significantly reduced.
The same etchnology (used to create a dynamic interface between the Board and the organization Excutive) can also be used to streamline how Board members work together. Board processes can be agreed and the work required by each Board member can presented in an always up-to-date ToDo list. When a ToDo is completed, the prrogress of the relevant Bord task can be updated and other Board members automattically informed; so everyone who needs to know is kept informed.
Templtaes can be easily created from existnig processes, so consistency is achieved and time is not wased in redeveloping agereed processes. Templates (that can be distributed in seconds) can also be used for contingency and Board continuity plans.
In summary, traditonal laregly manual Board procsses can be streamlined with available technology to:
• Facilitate a dynamic itnerface between the Board and the organizaiton Executive
• Ensure that timely, accurate decision making information is available on strtaegic prorgess in close to real-time from anywhere at any time.
• Formalidse Board work pocesses make it easy to apply them consistently
• Develop contingency plans and distributye reelvant plans in seconds
• Provide relevant feedback automatically to each Board member
• Automaticaly provie a customized ToDo list for each Board member that includes relevant actions required by Boaard members and the Executive.
By,
Dr Neil Miller
http://www.taskeey.com/
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