Henry D. Wolfe discusses the characteristics organizations should be looking for in its board members, from an internal drive to the courage to make waves and a commitment to holding management accountable.
Every day, it seems, there is a host of new proposals and ideas for who should be appointed to public company boards and how. But there’s an important question missing from the debate:
What specific attributes should we be looking for to ensure that directors of public companies are not only good enough, but truly great?
From decades of experience serving on the boards of companies and organizations, I have seen the immense difference it makes to a company’s ultimate success when each member of a board is engaged in and contributes to the value maximization process. Truly great directors play an active role in this process, but there are a number of characteristics and actions they must demonstrate that underpin their ability to play this role.
1. Intent
A director’s primary intent when joining a board should be to engage in the development of the full potential of the company and thus maximize its longer-term value – period. It should never be about networking, building a resume, supplementing income, professional development, prestige or worse, making a social statement.
2. Drive
The intent…
