Boardroom INSIDER for… DECEMBER
2025 — A SCARY YEAR IN THE BOARDROOM
For both business and the world overall, 2025 has been a year of sharp, often erratic, change. And for corporate boards of directors, that makes it scary to plot sound, long-term corporate governance, says the December issue of online monthly Boardroom INSIDER.
“For boards, 2025 points toward a year ahead of uncertain, volatile governance,” writes BI publisher and boardroom speaker Ralph Ward. In Europe and the U.S., some key environmental disclosure rules have been put on hold. AI oversight mandates have exploded, but the specifics global companies must follow are tied up in international regulatory spats. As for shareholder activism, U.S. SEC chair Paul Atkins has signaled a rollback in tools activists use to get onto proxy ballots.
Ward notes that the year also saw world populist movements gaining power and influencing policy, increasing boardroom uncertainty for 2026. “Populism adds to the ambiguity. It’s typically based on whims and relationships… which is scary when you’re trying to navigate a long-term governance course.”
Other articles in Boardroom INSIDER for December include…
How audit committee chairs manage an increasingly tough jobConsidering an advisory board? How-to tips
Q&A… What to do when a board member pesters staff?
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RALPH WARD…
…is an internationally-recognized writer and commentator on the role of boards of directors, the secrets of how benchmark boards excel, gaining a board seat, and the future of governance worldwide.
Ward is the publisher of the online email newsletter Boardroom INSIDER, the worldwide source for practical, first-hand advice on better boards and directors ( www.boardroominsider.com).
He is author of the books Hacking the Boardroom (2025), Board Seeker: Your Guidebook and Career Map into the Corporate Boardroom (2018), Boardroom Q&A (2011), The New Boardroom Leaders (2008), Saving the Corporate Board (2003), Improving Corporate Boards: The Boardroom INSIDER Guidebook (2000), and 21st Century Corporate Board (1997).
Ward is a certified trainer, and speaks internationally on board and governance topics, and presents a “Boardroom Masterclass” seminar worldwide, with recent programs in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. His media appearances including CNNfn, C-SPAN, Voice of America, Bloomberg Money Show, National Public Radio, Marketplace, and CNBC (U.S. and U.K.).
Ward has also edited The Corporate Board magazine, the international journal of corporate governance, since 1990. He writes and comments on boardroom matters for a number of other publications, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Across the Board, Crains, Vital Speeches, the Detroit Free Press, Barrons and INC.com., and serves on several advisory and non-profit boards.