ABSTRACT
This chapter asks whether boards today are ‘fit for the future’. Building on some of the themes from preceding chapters, it suggests how directors, boards and governance might prepare for a more unpredictable future and considers some of the more emergent and agile ways in which boards can govern.
The responsibility for steering and stewarding companies through what is an increasingly uncertain environment is in the hands of both investors and boards. This responsibility is not only about today’s, next month’s or next quarter’s earnings, but also anticipating and preparing for opportunities and challenges further ahead. Regulation is not the only issue causing boards to change. The demands on boards today are profound. These reflect the combined effects of complex regulatory environments, geopolitical factors, economic uncertainties made more complex by Brexit, the rise of populist maverick leaders, accelerating cyber-attacks on businesses and governments, demographic changes, growing wealth inequalities, globalised competition and emerging technology on company strategy. These pressures are forcing organisations to focus on being fit for purpose and to adapt. In 2016, 48 per cent of 400 US public directors surveyed felt that economic uncertainty was one of the biggest challenges facing corporate boards (WDT report 2016, NYSE Publications).
