Directors & Boards articles from June 1998

Directors & Boards archives from June 1998

Succeeding at succession.
June 22, 1998... Over twenty years ago I completed my doctorate at the Harvard Business School. My dissertation examined the role of the chief executive officer in managing major transitions, with a particular focus on CEO succession. At that time, a board of...

In six feet of water. (scenario for motivating corporate directors)
June 22, 1998... As I look around the governance scene these past few months, I am reminded of an observation by one of the grand business statesmen and philosophers, Fletcher Byrom. He was the chairman of Koppers Co. when he retired in 1982 after two decades of...

Rabbi Hillel on corporate governance: why is it that the 'guideliners' who would instruct us on board standards don't follow their own guidelines?
June 22, 1998... Why is it that the 'guideliners' who would instruct us on board standards don't follow their own guidelines? Early in Herod's reign, Rabbi Shammai and Hillel were separately approached by a man demanding to be taught the entire Torah while...

In praise of dissent: disagreement on the board may well be preferable to unvarying agreement and a "trip to Abilene."
June 22, 1998... An adjective often used to describe one quality of a good director is "collegial," a word that may evoke an exchange of pleasantries at the Faculty Club. (At least to those who have never been there; to those who have, and especially to trustees...

Be wary when establishing a Website: a cautionary tale of a board, a new product, and the intricacies of the Internet as a marketing tool.
June 22, 1998... Establishing a company website on the Internet can be one of the most effective ways to market a company s products or services. There are, however, a wide variety of legal risks involved in creating and operating a website, as illustrated by the...

Take charge of your search relationships: too many companies have let themselves lose control of the critical flow of human capital.
June 22, 1998... The CEO oF A $3.5 billion consumer products company becomes enraged when he learns he has lost a valuable executive to a competitor and, worse yet, the departing executive was recruited away by an executive search firm to which the CEO's...

Boardroom Basics: A Pocket Guide for Directors.
June 22, 1998... Roger Ford's new book, Boardroom Basics: A Pocket Guide For Directors, addresses board issues that smaller, privately owned companies typically face. Well written and easy to read, this is an excellent first book for anyone looking for a quick...

Boards at Work.
June 22, 1998... Ram Charan sounds a clarion call for change in the way corporate boards work and gives a detailed outline of how to go about making some of these changes. He brings his message none too soon. As he contends in his new book Boards at Work: How...

The workings of a model board. (Compaq Computer's board of directors)(includes related articles on typical Compaq board meeting and on book 'How to Advertise')(Interview)
June 22, 1998... From dark days in 1991 to today's award-winning recognition, Compaq Computer's board has been hardwired for action. Kenneth Roman says he learned corporate governance from being at the wrong end of a hostile takeover. It was the late 1980s and...

How to hire the right CEO. (role of corporate directors)(includes related article on a board's decision to reject a CEO candidate)
June 22, 1998... Choosing a chief executive is one of the most important jobs a board member is asked to perform. Here is a methodology to assess and select CEO candidates based on the factors that best predict performance, known as behavioral competencies....

From ritual to real work: the board as a team. (board of directors)
June 22, 1998... What does it take for a largely ceremonial aggregation of powerful individuals who spend relatively little time with each other to somehow transform themselves into a high-performance team that adds real value to the organization? Ever since...

A request to join the board: how to determine whether an invitation to the boardroom really means a trip to the courtroom.
June 22, 1998... Anyone who has been asked to join the board of directors of a public company, especially for the first time, has every right to feel flattered by the invitation. After all, the person's wisdom and judgment are being sought by the company and the...

Detecting financial statement fraud. (includes related articles on fraud examiners and on audit committee)
June 22, 1998... Heighten your awareness with this briefing on the motives for and types of financial statement fraud, and apply the array of detection and prevention recommendations. It has been estimated that fraud costs U.S. organizations more than $400...

Become a master of capital management. (includes related articles on low investment rate of return accompanying low cost of capital)
June 22, 1998... Lowering your cost of capital is a critical corporate strategy of the future. Here are the benefits of having a cost-of-capital advantage over your competitors. Reducing cost of capital is the largest controllable source of costs that...

More boards seek CFOs as new directors. (boards of directors; chief financial officers)
June 22, 1998... Given their ability to view the "big picture" - an ability surpassed perhaps only by the CEO - it is not surprising that more and more CFOs are finding themselves seated at the boardroom table. We see A growing demand for CFOs to serve on...

Directors roster. (newly appointed corporate directors)
June 22, 1998... In affiliation with Spencer Stuart - a quarterly record of new director appointments Roger H. Mudd was a journeyman reporter 45 years ago at a newspaper operated by Richmond News Inc., which then owned two local newspapers and a radio station....

Brenda Barnes. (former president and CEO of Pepsi-Cola North America)
June 22, 1998... As a business leader or stay-at-home mom, the former Pepsi executive's business instincts are much needed in the boardroom. In January 1998, Brenda Barnes stepped down as president and CEO of Pepsi-Cola North America in order to spend more time...

L. Dennis Kozlowski. (chairman and CEO of Tyco International and corporate director of U.S. Office Products Co.)
June 22, 1998... Tyco International's master of acquisitions has acquired a new board postion at U.S. Office Products Co. In January 1998, U.S. Office Products Co. (USOP) announced a strategic restructuring plan that ultimately split the office products...

Walter E. Massey. (corporate director of McDonald's Corp.)
June 22, 1998... Its commitment to diversity sways a leader in education and science in joining the board of the Golden Arches. Soon after Dr. Walter E. Massey received an invitation from McDonald's Corp. to join its board, he read a negative cover story in a...

Sharon Percy Rockefeller. (corporate director of Sotheby's Holdings Inc.)
June 22, 1998... For an opening on its corporate board, Sotheby's makes a winning bid for a longtime leader of the arts. Arts lover, supporter, and collector Sharon Percy Rockefeller turned from bidder to board member when she was appointed in April 1998 as a...

As I, an owner-director, see it. (role of corporate directors)
June 22, 1998... Here are several initiatives that will likely improve the functioning of boards. No product, group of products, or services is so extraordinary that its maker can prosper over the long run without excellent management. In the same vein,...