Boardroom INSIDER for… JUNE

BP – What Makes a “Good” Or “Bad” Board Chair?

The hottest global boardroom news of the moment is the sudden sacking of Albert Manifold as board chair of petro giant BP.  Though the board cited “governance oversight and conduct issues,” the boardroom buzz included tales of bullying, secrecy, and rough justice in shaking up BP’s troubled corporate culture. 

But an article in the June issue of online governance monthly Boardroom INSIDER notes such turmoil is inevitable because no one can answer a basic question. “What is the role of an independent board chair?” asks BI publisher and governance speaker Ralph Ward. 

Every country and jurisdiction defines the role and powers of independent board leaders differently (usually on the side of vagueness).  But this leaves chairmanship as “whatever the person holding the seat at the moment wants to do.”  Ward writes that, whether a chairman is a mild paper pusher or a bossy firebrand, “we can’t say either is right or wrong.”

Also in the June issue of Boardroom INSIDER …

How smart board seekers recruit a boardroom “sponsor”
The board agenda “parking lot” – a valuable tool
Q&A: Is AI writing our board books now (and what are the dangers)?

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…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.