Are we back to the early days of COVID when it comes to governance?
The rapid disruptions to the U.S. economy and industry regulations in 2025 have opened the question of whether associations need to be in "crisis mode" in response, and what role boards need to play. There is some evidence that, even late last year, CEOs and boards were not on the same page about that. Earlier this week, Reuters reported on a survey from the consultancy Spencer Stuart that found that just 22 percent of corporate executives felt "their boards were providing the help they needed in an increasingly uncertain business environment."
Directors are in a better mood about things: 43 percent of board members say they’re providing their CEOs with adequate support. But that’s not an especially high number itself, and plainly there’s a gap in perceptions about how well boards are fulfilling their roles. CEOs, for their part, seem to think board members need to step up their game, much as they did in the early days of the pandemic. One anonymous executive quoted in the report said, "In normal times, the quarterly advisory nature of boards is just fine, but in volatile times... it would be great to feel like your board is operating with an 'all-hands-on-deck' attitude."
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