Directors & Boards articles from September 1994

Directors & Boards archives from September 1994

Problems with boards of small companies.
September 22, 1994... Based on real experience, here is a litany of dysfunctional behavior on small-company boards and what can be done about it. Help is what small companies with revenues of zero to $50 million need from their directors. Monitoring and oversight...

Customize your governance.
September 22, 1994... In board structure and practices, there is no 'one size fits all.' Tailor your governance to fit your company's circumstances...but stay ahead of the curve. Corporate strategies, structures, and shareownership are in a period of dynamic...

A framework for a board retreat.
September 22, 1994... A retreat is a rare opportunity for the board to work at its 'game' and to achieve a new standard of performance and satisfaction. While tennis singles is one of the snazziest individual sports, as most weekend players know, the doubles game...

What's the story with your stock price?
September 22, 1994... Here is a set of important measurements that will provide guidance to the board on the effectiveness of your company's investor relations efforts. Do you remember a time when you decided to make a difference, and your attention and intent led...

Wanted: 'at risk' investment. (stock ownership)
September 22, 1994... A 1994 proxy survey reveals a proliferation of stock ownership guidelines for chief executives and other senior officers. Just as the tempest surrounding executive pay has gathered force in the last several years, so has the response by...

Where are you on the sigmoid curve? (growth curve)(includes related article)
September 22, 1994... Wise are they who start a new curve before the first one peters out, because that is the way to build a new future. The sigmoid curve is the S-shaped curve that has intrigued people since time began (Exhibit 1). The sigmoid curve sums up the...

Anticipatory capability. (management strategy)(includes related article)
September 22, 1994... Foster this skill at the board level so that directors can help expand the thinking and, ultimately, the vision of senior management. Edward A. Filene, a noted American retailer and philanthropist, said that to succeed, a businessman had to be...

The engine in reengineering. (includes related articles)
September 22, 1994... Most of us are aware that tapping the power of people is the key to leading successful organizations. A reengineering program is the great moment of truth for a company, when getting people focused and engaged is a matter of survival. According...

The new work of managers.
September 22, 1994... Managers must remake three aspects of their jobs as they rebuild their enterprises. After four years of growth in the reengineering movement, two things have emerged as certainties: One, fear and doubt are growing in the managerial ranks, and...

How to fail at reengineering. (includes related article)
September 22, 1994... When the promise of reengineering is unfulfilled, one or more of these four common errors is likely being committed. There are many reengineering disappointments. They are typically projects that failed to live up to original expectations for...

Reengineering the MBA.
September 22, 1994... The challenge confronting graduate business education parallels the challenge currently confronting much of Corporate America. What's Killing the Business School Deans of America? That provocative question was the title of a recent article in...

Beyond reengineering.
September 22, 1994... The challenge of managing longer-term, far-reaching business transformation is considerable. Here are four key elements to address. Business reengineering is the latest, and perhaps the most hyped, of a long line of silver management bullets...

Demand is rising for women directors.
September 22, 1994... The numbers tell only part of the story of the evolution in boardroom thinking. Though historically women were virtually unrepresented on corporate boards, demand for women directors has begun to rise recently, and there isn't a simple...

Women directors at work: a conversation with Siri S. Marshall. (Interview)
September 22, 1994... "Men learn that what motivates a woman to serve on a board is not a desire to 'rock the boat' or introduce some personal agenda but a wish to add value to the board." That is one of the observations made by Julie Hembrock Daum of SpencerStuart in...

Directors roster.
September 22, 1994... Revenues are $50.1 million. Motor Wheel is a supplier of wheel and brake products. Revenues are $139 million. CYTOMED INC. 840 Memorial Drive Cambridge, MA 02139 added to its board: William W. Crouse Vice Chairman and General Partner...

The fragile nature of leadership.
September 22, 1994... When General Motors Corp. Chairman John G. Smale addressed the Council of Institutional Investors earlier this year, he provided perspective on the release of the GM Board Guidelines on Significant Corporate Governance Issues. This set of 28...