Options
Boards' contribution to organizational growth : Effectiveness as a critical success factor
Series
Management for Professionals
ISBN
978-3-642--24652-4
Type
book section
Date Issued
2011
Author(s)
Abstract
As a guardian of corporate values, boards are not only ultimately responsible for
organizations' strategic direction, but also play a decisive role concerning balanced growth. However, not all boards place equal emphasis on identifying and populating strategic growth opportunities. Instead of leaving everything to management, board members could make a difference by becoming more actively involved in a company's affairs.
In order for a board to be management's true strategic partner, it is of prime
importance that board members show a strong personal commitment to their work. Consequently, it is crucial to make sufficient time available for individual board mandates and to ensure effective working procedures when working as a group. To improve the quality of board involvement and foster organizational growth, each board member could, for instance, be asked to regularly submit innovative ideas for the board's agenda and to vigorously contribute to the list of key strategic decisions that need to be made. The emphasis should not be on mere augmentation of growth percentages, but rather on having an enduring and sustainable impact.
A further critical success factor to enhance board effectiveness is innovative
succession planning. Heterogeneity is specifically considered a future competitive
company advantage. A favorable and worthwhile option for the board's succession planning is therefore to "think out of the network" instead of being comfortable with well-tried and traditional search methods. Furthermore, rigorous performance appraisal is crucial for effective board work. Consequently, board evaluation has become an integral part of good corporate governance. By maximizing strengths and highlighting areas for further development, board members are continually urged to reflect on how to continually improve their working procedures as well as their underlying performance.
organizations' strategic direction, but also play a decisive role concerning balanced growth. However, not all boards place equal emphasis on identifying and populating strategic growth opportunities. Instead of leaving everything to management, board members could make a difference by becoming more actively involved in a company's affairs.
In order for a board to be management's true strategic partner, it is of prime
importance that board members show a strong personal commitment to their work. Consequently, it is crucial to make sufficient time available for individual board mandates and to ensure effective working procedures when working as a group. To improve the quality of board involvement and foster organizational growth, each board member could, for instance, be asked to regularly submit innovative ideas for the board's agenda and to vigorously contribute to the list of key strategic decisions that need to be made. The emphasis should not be on mere augmentation of growth percentages, but rather on having an enduring and sustainable impact.
A further critical success factor to enhance board effectiveness is innovative
succession planning. Heterogeneity is specifically considered a future competitive
company advantage. A favorable and worthwhile option for the board's succession planning is therefore to "think out of the network" instead of being comfortable with well-tried and traditional search methods. Furthermore, rigorous performance appraisal is crucial for effective board work. Consequently, board evaluation has become an integral part of good corporate governance. By maximizing strengths and highlighting areas for further development, board members are continually urged to reflect on how to continually improve their working procedures as well as their underlying performance.
Language
English
Keywords
board
board of directors
strategy
strategies
growth
organizational growth
balanced growth
effectiveness
effectiveness of boards
critical success factor
board performance
HSG Classification
contribution to practical use / society
Refereed
No
Book title
Balanced growth: finding strategies for sustainable development
Publisher
Springer
Publisher place
Berlin
Start page
123
End page
136
Pages
14
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
207785