ECSE-PBC Governance CPD Webinar Series
Managing Board Effectiveness
Summary/Purpose: We live in a world of VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity). In today’s ultra-competitive landscape, organizations and the Boards that lead them are under the microscope. There is no room for complacency. We have often heard the phrase “The Board sets the tone at the top,” but what does it mean in practice? The Board, both as a collective and the individuals within it, need to ensure that they have the tools and strategies that can optimize their effectiveness. As the ISO 37000 Standard states, boards need to demonstrate competence, diversity, independence of thought and action, capacity, probity and commitment. Anything less is a failure in governance for which boards and their members risk personal liability and damage to their reputation and careers.
Therefore, it is critical that the board does not fail itself and its stakeholders by compromising its independence and objectivity, failing to educate itself, to learn and evolve, or fall prey to negative board dynamics that can derail the most experienced and knowledgeable board. This session is designed to discuss activities that form the foundation for a learning board that consistently reviews its processes with a view to improvement and evolution.
Content: This session will cover a range of tools that boards need to ensure that they are able to meet the demands of their stakeholders. It is imperative to use these tools effectively and so we examine the following activities and how they can serve the board to become an adaptable, agile and evolving team that acts as a role model for purpose driven governance and culture integrated throughout the organization.
• Processes for building an effective board structure composed of the right people, skills and attributes.
• New director onboarding and orientation that gets the new director off to the best possible start by building knowledge, confidence and familiarity with the board and the wider organization.
• We examine the value a board assessment can bring, and the key characteristics of successful assessment which if administered well, can be a major leap in the board’s effectiveness.
• Objectivity is crucial to effective decision-making. We consider processes to ensure conflicts of interest are managed so that independence is maintained.
• How a program of Continuing Professional Development can create a framework for a learning board that responds and adapts to its operating environment, and retains its ability to lead the organization from the front.
• The benefits of a positive boardroom culture and how to achieve it, recognising that boardroom dynamics is one of the primary tools to support effective decisions and ultimately protect the board’s reputation.
Benefits: Participants will gain a strong appreciation of the importance of supporting and empowering the board through effective tools and activities and gain an insight into how those tools can be applied in practice to optimise board performance. With an emphasis on the practical application of these tools, participants can benchmark them against their own boards and walk away with valuable insights and strategies they can utilise in their organization. In doing so, they can contribute enormously to empowering their boards in the pursuit of excellence.
Who should attend: : Board chairs, company directors, company secretaries, chief executives and any executive working with or supporting the board, and those who wish to empower their Board to optimise their performance through building a framework for board effectiveness.
Registration: The webinar will be delivered Wednesday May 7, from 9:00 am to 10:30 am (UTC-4).
Fees: A Registration Fee of EC$295 (US$110) per participant is payable to the Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange Ltd by Credit Card, Wire Transfer or Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) by 2nd May 2025.
Discounted Rate for ECSE Affiliates and CGIC Members – EC$270 (US$100)
(CGIC members must include their membership number to benefit from this discount)
To register, click here:
Your Facilitator:
Paul Dubal LLB, FCG, GPC.D.
Founder Perfect Balance Consulting, Toronto.
Paul has 25 years of corporate secretarial, corporate governance and regulatory experience both in house and as a professional services consultant in the United Kingdom, Canada, Caribbean and the Middle East. He has worked for KPMG LLP and PwC in leadership roles and served in senior in-house roles for several listed financial services companies. He has also provided governance services to Mid-Cap and Large-Cap companies in Europe, North and South America and the Caribbean region. Paul has worked extensively with a diverse range of boards and senior management teams on governance matters.
Prior to starting his business, he was Head of Corporate Governance at First Abu Dhabi Bank, the largest bank in the Gulf region, where he developed the Bank’s corporate governance framework, advised the Board and executive management on the new UAE Corporate Governance Regulations, refined the Bank’s management committee, and developed its international governance structure across twenty jurisdictions globally.
Paul is a certified life coach, group coach and certified emotional intelligence (EQ-i) assessor and practitioner, and provides governance solutions to small/mid-Cap organizations, board training in governance strategy, risk and compliance, and one-to-one executive coaching to mid-senior level professionals with a focus on leadership and EQ. Paul is the global lead facilitator for the ISO37000 Governance of Organizations certification, the leading program on governance thought leadership. He is an influential thought leader on EQ, leadership and sustainability in the corporate governance field and a highly sought after speaker, coach and consultant on a range of governance matters.
Paul is a Fellow of the Chartered Governance Institute of Canada (CGIC) and holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from Middlesex University (UK) and a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from Leicester De Montfort University (UK).