Top
5 Reasons why businesses have Advisory Boards:
1. To increase
the value of the business for the shareholders.
2. To insure that the business survives.
3. To respectfully challenge and advise management about finances,
systems and structures.
4. To create and encourage accountability and professionalism
in the management team.
5. To bring outside contacts, information and knowledge that will
help the business.
Top
5 Reasons Advisory Boards fail to deliver value:
1. Lack of
good and timely operating and strategic information.
2. Lack of family and/or owners alignment and contribution.
3. Too many insiders on the Board.
4. For private boards, inability of the CEO to take in and implement
Board recommendations.
5. Lack of strategic focus and inability to anticipate the future.
TheBoardWorks'
capabilities:
1. Creating
high performance Boards of Advisors for small to medium sized
companies.
2. Conducting Board "tune ups" to refocus and energize
the Public and Advisory Board process for existing Boards.
3. Guiding the Advisory Board meeting process to efficiently deliver
the outcomes that the owners want.
4. Serving on Boards where our skills and experience match the
needs of the company.
TheBoardWorks'
Process
The BoardWorks™
on line survey process and analysis is an important tool for increasing
the Board's performance. The process examines nine critical areas
for both Public and Private Boards. It evaluates the Board's current
performance and points to the changes that will lead to higher
performance.
Advisory
Board Performance Review Sections
1. Understanding
what the owners want
2. Quality and availability of strategic information
3. Quality and availability of operational and financial information
4. Effectiveness of the Board meeting process
5. Communications
6. Expected outcomes of the Board process
7. Board composition
8. Effectiveness of Board members
9. Effectiveness of the CEO
Public
Board Performance Review Sections:
1. Quality
and availability of strategic information
2. Quality and availability of operational and financial information
3. Effectiveness of the Board meeting process
4. Communications
5. Expected outcomes of the Board process
6. Board composition
7. Effectiveness of Board members
8. Effectiveness of the CEO
9. Fiduciary and legal responsibilities
Board Performance
Profile
The process
prompts the Board members to rank the importance of Key Performance
Factors (KPF) within each area and rate the Board's performance
on these factors. TheBoardWorks' analysis then creates the Board
Performance Profile and points to factors where improvement will
have the greatest impact.
Board Alignment
Indices
A second tier
analysis leads to the Board Alignment Indices (BAI). Here the
Board members see their level of agreement or disagreement on
each section and on each KPF. The Alignment Indices' point the
members to places where their differences must be resolved in
order to have a high performing Board.
Best Practices
Report
Using TheBoardWorks'
data base of surveys done for similar companies, TheBoardWorks
matches each Board's Performance Profile to the profile of other
similar companies. This helps the Board know where significant
improvements are possible and how they are performing compared
to other Boards.
Board Tune-Up
Session
At this meeting,
the Board is presented with the results of the survey and its
interpretation. The analysis and the graphical presentation open
discussion and self examination. Priorities and action plans are
set to increase the value that the Board adds to the company's
process and the shareholder value.
Board Progress Review
The Board
Progress Review is performed annually to determine the Board's
progress since its last Tune Up on the Key Performance Factors
that drive the value of the process and the company. New performance
enhancement goals are set for the coming year.
A
Test Drive of TheBoardWorks™
Want to try
a small test to see how the on-line Tune-Up Assessment works?
Click Here to Take a Test Drive
You will see how the on-line process works and receive a confidential
mini-report via email with no cost or obligation to you.
CEO
self assessment before creating an Advisory Board
Here are five
questions you should consider before creating your Advisory Board:
Why do
I want a Board?
As the leader
of the company, in what areas do you want top level advice and
what could a Board do that will help you build value? When you
look at the skills and experience of your team and your own strengths
what do you need more of to create the future you want in your
company? Perhaps you need advice from business people who have
managed companies larger than yours or who know the markets that
you plan to enter or who may help you position the company for
sale or who can help manage family business issues.
Write down
your 5 top reasons for having a Board.
What outcomes do I want from the Board process?
What do you
want to happen? Jot down the outcomes you want for yourself and
your company three years out. Is it a sale at $X? Do you want
to pass the business along to the next generation? Do you want
to create financial security while doubling the size of the business?
When you decide what you want, then think about what would an
ideal Board look like and what would they bring to you to help
you get what you want.
Who do
I want on the Board?
If you know
what you want and have a plan for getting there, then your Board
members should bring the skills, experience and styles that will
match your needs and the drivers of the value building strategies.
They should bring their competencies to you in a way that you
can respect and accept. If you plan to sell in 3 years, you may
want advisors who have built the value of their business and sold
them. If you are a sales driven company, you may want CEOs who
have those skills and experience to help you.
It is important
to set a list of criteria for each Board position and compare
candidates against those criteria.
What am I willing to do to make this Advisory Board process
successful?
Are you willing
to play the game of being accountable to these advisors even though
they know you know that they cannot fire you (the CEO)? If you
answer "yes," then you can take the meetings seriously,
prepare well for them, perform on the commitments you make at
the Board meetings and allocate resources to take advantage of
the opportunities that the Board process uncovers.
How do
I set expectations with the Board members?
Setting the
proper expectations for a new Board is one of the keys to its
performance. If everyone has the same set of performance expectations,
then the chances are high that the Board outcomes will exceed
expectations.
TheBoardWorksLaunch™
program opens the discussion about the member expectations before
and during the first meeting.
In Stage 1,
the owners come to agreement on why they are forming a Board and
what outcomes they want.
In Stage 2, Board members and the owners discuss their expectations
of each other and the Board process and agree on their expectations
around the Key Performance Factors.
The Board can then focus on delivering high performance against
the most impactful KPFs.
Creating
a High Performance, Board of Advisors CD by Bill
Hawfield
Here is a collection of lessons learned from experience on over
20 Boards combined with research on published Best Practices about
Boards. Learn how to create a Board of Advisors and manage the
Board process so that you and your company achieve the results
that you want. Single copy: $19.95, plus shipping. Order 5 or
more copies at $14.95 each with free shipping.
Click
Here to Order
TheBoardWorks
Learning E-letter
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Board's performance or your own performance as a Board member,
enter your name and email address here.
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