New Chair at the table

50% of CEO’s also wear the hat of board Chairperson, trying to juggle those two very contrasting roles.

Not the best idea, because of conflict of interest, between CEO commerciality and governing fairly as Chair.  However, that duality, in one person, continues because people cost money and good Chairs are hard to find. 

CEO is the public facing representative of a company.  The Chairperson on the other hand, is the facilitator of group consensus in the board.

Nobody wants CEO to tell the board what to think – but the risk is there – when Chairperson is absent, does not exist or is bundled up in the CEO role.

A good Chair has wisdom, availability, gathers the best information and inputs, and does stakeholder management and consultation, in the interests of the best collective decision making at board level.

Luckily – CEO’s can use SEEIO’s technology to perform numerous governance duties associated with the Chairperson – so that CEO only has to preside over meeting and sign the minutes.   The accumulation of bright effective governance and your board pack, all happens automatically on SEEIO – taking a huge load off the shoulders of your team.

SEEIO platform generates a virtual ‘board mindset’ (collective action) because SEEIO is:

  • Organised
  • Always on
  • Collects the right information
  • Involves you in risk analysis
  • Sets objectives
  • Creates the right agenda
  • Takes you to a meeting
  • Records the meeting

Boards made of people, struggle to meet up at all – and do it infrequently.  So much time is wasted chasing people to meet, when technology brings everything together instantly.

SEEIO is always on – directors access latest, real-time metrics any time, without having to wait for the next board meeting.

  • Ideas are generating, forward progress is happening – before your board meeting does,
  • SEEIO is always on and shows you progress.

Some board Chairs try to create agendas and governance calendars 12 months in advance.

  • SEEIO does it for you. 

Board Chairs love well-written board reports that draw on strong evidence and make sensible recommendations, after wide stakeholder input.  

  • SEEIO does it for you, because it automatically forms well written, succinct, nicely laid-out board papers that have sought the right stakeholder input.  Fully customisable, to your revisions at any time.

Good board Chairs are action-oriented, focussed on moving forwards.

  • SEEIO generates Action points, which certainly means you’re less likely to forget or fail to recognise an action point, because writing up actions is a skill in itself.

A board Chair, can’t be the boss.  S/he is a bystander – not a player.  A facilitator of good collective decisions based on top quality information, action orientated.

Perhaps the biggest skill of a good board Chair, is impartiality.  Hence Chair and CEO do not fit in the same person. 

The best Chairs, turn their directors into even better skilled directors.

  • SEEIO is impartial.
  •  SEEIO runs governance and board meetings, better than you do. 
  • At the same time, it is your customisation which creates the final cut on your documents.
  • SEEIO skills-up your directors because the interconnected power tools follow the same thought process as a cohesive, well-informed Board.

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