company culture

Company Culture Starts With Corporate Governance

You’ve seen the headlines—“company culture” is one of the most-covered topics in business leadership over the past couple of years. You can read about why you shouldn’t just let your company culture happen.

You can explore “Why Corporate Culture Is Becoming More Important.” And, you can see how productive culture will boost your organization’s performance.

Before we launch into how company culture begins with the board, let’s define the term we’re using.

The Definition of Company Culture

According to Wikipedia, company culture (also referred to as organizational culture) “encompasses values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization…and includes the organization’s vision, values, norms, systems, symbols, language, assumptions, environment, location, beliefs, and habits.”

Yes, that’s a long definition! To simplify, culture is created through a blend of the practices, policies, and people that make up an organization.
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Directorpoint European expansion

Directorpoint Celebrates the Launch of a European Data Center

Big news from the Directorpoint team! This summer has seen our company reach several milestones.

New Directorpoint European Data Center

Directorpoint is thrilled to announce the opening of an official headquarters and data center in the UK. As our number of European clients has grown, we have actively pursued ways to improve their product experience.

The establishment of the data center, in particular, will allow clients in the European Union to experience significantly faster download and upload speeds while using our software. The Directorpoint team sees this European expansion as the next step for extending its international reach.

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corporate governance books

Top Five Corporate Governance Books

Are you looking to take a deeper dive into the world of corporate governance? We’ve put together a collection of books and reading suggestions for board directors.

Reading Suggestions for Board Directors

Dear Chairman

This fascinating read by hedge fund manager and adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, Jeff Gramm, digs deep into the ever-evolving relationship between corporate directors and shareholder activists.

“Gramm analyzes different eras and pivotal boardroom battles from the last century to understand the factors that have caused shareholders and management to collide. Throughout, he uses the letters to show how investors interact with directors and managers, how they think about their target companies, and how they plan to profit.”

Who should read? Public company and corporate directors as well as board members with an interest in the history of shareholder activism.
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Dealing With Unprepared Board Members

As with any group setting, when you bring a board of directors together, some members will be more prepared than others. Most directors will study reports in advance and be ready to share their input accordingly.

Others, however, may feel more inclined to coast through the meeting, glean what they can, and share opinionated statements on the spot.

These unprepared board members can occasionally create a difficult group dynamic.

The good news, though, is that there are steps your board can take towards encouraging (and even helping) members to adequately prepare.

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external auditor

What Is an External Auditor? (And Do Boards Need One?)

When it comes to reviewing a company’s financial status, every organization needs a good external auditor. Auditors look through in-depth accounting information in order to ensure that the reporting is a true representation of an organization’s financial position.

Auditors also assess things such as risk in order to help guide organizations to a healthier and more prosperous financial future.

Internal audits happen frequently within an organization. Companies utilize their own hired talent to review the work of others or the overall validity of the company’s financial reporting. As the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners explains it, “The internal audit function helps an organization accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control, and governance processes.

The scope of internal auditing is broad and may involve the efficiency of operations, IT controls, the reliability of financial reporting, deterring and detecting fraud, and compliance with laws and regulations.”
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corporate governance

What Does Good Corporate Governance Look Like?

It’s easy to talk about strengthening your board of directors, but how do you know when you’ve reached a high-functioning level of corporate governance?

In this day and age, building and maintaining a successful board means checking off many different boxes. As the role of the corporate director continues to expand and technology keeps leaping forward, board members should take the time to reflect on their impact as individuals and as a group.

Here are some signs that your board is thriving:

Directors have a firm understanding of their responsibilities

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board software communication

Board Software Communication Vs. Emailing Board Documents

These days, most boards are making the choice to go paperless. While some opt for centralized communication through the use of board software, others have simply stuck to email for their needs.

In fact, according to a 2014 Thomson-Reuters study, approximately 43% of boards were still emailing their sensitive board documents.

While email prevents added costs to board operations, it also poses many potential downfalls and risks.

Email isn’t secure.

You’ve seen the headlines. Email hacks are a dime a dozen these days. Not long ago, we wrote a blog about the infamous Salesforce leak, which originated with an email from Colin Powell.

Because they sent their board documents via email, their hypothetical plans for 14 different company acquisitions became public knowledge.

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board management strategies

5 Best Practices for Effective Board Management

Modern boards of directors must constantly adapt to changing times, changing technology, and changing expectations for companies and organizations. The most successful boards are able to combine strategic vision with effective group dynamics in order to make the best decisions possible. We’ve compiled a list of 5 effective board management strategies to help your board succeed.

1. Clearly separate the role of the board from the CEO’s ability to run the organization.

The CEO and the board of directors are a team. Starting from the time when a board finds and hires a CEO, the board and CEO must be on the same page about expectations, communication, and, most importantly,
roles.

The board of directors provides oversight and input into an organization’s progress. Meanwhile, it is the CEO who is busy moving the company forward with day-to-day affairs.
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what is a board portal

What Exactly is a Board Portal?

As corporate needs and recent cybersecurity issues evolve, new industries and technologies are rising to address those needs. Board portals, board meeting software, board management software: they all refer to a similar group of services. So, what is a board portal?

A board portal is software used by boards of directors, advisory boards, and other leadership teams to securely collaborate and share information.

Board portal features

Board portals are useful for companies and groups in all industries, including financial, government, healthcare, and non-profit organizations. Fundamentally, board portals help your organization’s leaders to communicate securely, access information easily, and make better decisions sooner.
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