Today’s boards of directors functions in a time of enhanced oversight, risk management, and heightened expectations with higher rates of remote workforces than ever before. The concept of a virtual boardroom is not going away. Focusing on the right areas of oversight and the right tools can significantly impact your remote boardroom’s success.
Key Oversight Areas for Virtual Boardrooms
These key areas are focused on the board of director’s responsibility to provide active oversight and support to an evolving situation with virtual work.
Managing Corporate Risk
Risk management is perpetually at the top of the list of concerns for boards for directors and corporate secretaries. Ensuring that the board maintains accurate tracking of identifiable and potential risks to the corporation’s goals is imperative to the organization’s continued success. Tracking these risks digitally can streamline the process and prevent items from being overlooked. Oversight for the functioning of internal controls, audits, or financial reviews may change due to working remotely. Reevaluating these processes and controls creates an opportunity for increased streamlining and improvement.
Crisis Management planning may look different in a virtual environment than the board is accustomed to. The various elements of a crisis management plan may exist in your organization, but reevaluating them for a board that has gone virtual and collecting them together into a coherent strategy is a crucial part of preparing. The most important aspects of a crisis management plan are becoming prepared and being proactive for the crisis itself. Mark Carrick, GAICD of Global Business Resilience, says, “The preparation, planning, and prevention stages of a crisis are where the most important work is done.” Focusing on things like a crisis response playbook, communication templates, checklists, and manuals that are specific to your organization’s remote work situation will be critical if a crisis should arise.
Pro Tip: Download our free guide to Crisis Management Best Practices for Boards of Directors
Board Engagement
Engaged board members are more knowledgeable and passionate about the companies they serve. It is only natural that a devoted board member will be a better advocate for their organization. This dedication can translate into increased opportunities, better public relations, expanded board recruitment opportunities, and any number of other benefits.
Whether your board has always been tech-savvy or has only recently made the transition to a virtual boardroom, engagement is a significant area to evaluate for continued oversight and success. Engaging board members virtually will be drastically different in a virtual environment, making secure connection and collaboration through a partner like Govenda so important. Finding the right partner to help keep board members engaged during and between virtual meetings is imperative for good engagement of a virtual board of directors.
IT and Cybersecurity
IT and Cybersecurity are vital players for a virtual workforce. Ensuring your organization is prepared with the proper infrastructure and technology to support your workforce is crucial to getting work done. Still, the protection of that infrastructure and technology is imperative for progress.
If your corporation doesn’t already have a robust and up to date cybersecurity plan, that needs to become a priority. The first step for mitigating board cybersecurity risks is recognizing that the threat is real. Perpetrators will continue to evolve and target companies for the monetization of personal data and information. “A breach can have dire consequences for companies, including regulatory investigations, loss of intellectual property and financial risk from fraudulent transactions,” warns Spencer Stuart.
Pro Tip: Check out our downloadable Cybersecurity Agreement Guide for your board of directors.
Don’t leave out confidentiality concerns for remote working environments from your considerations. The oversight of these situations has shifted dramatically in the rise of a virtual workforce.
Govenda's Board Success Platform™
As an industry-leading board portal, Govenda provides a portal to virtually connect and collaborate with leaders and employees. With a robust suite of tools for communication, agenda-building, and secure information sharing, Govenda keeps organizations running smoothly.
Govenda’s board portal software ensures your organization has a complete ecosystem to securely and efficiently set up board meetings, communicate consistently with leadership, and follow up after meetings. Govenda provides the security your board needs to prevent information from leaking as you manage your organization’s transition to virtual board meetings. Having a fully contained platform will reduce your board’s reliance on non-secure texts and emails and ensure that critical video conference information is shared securely. The right technology partner enables your corporate leadership to remain hyper-focused on the organization’s needs.
Govenda’s board management software makes it easier for boards to promptly report on important information for all board members, including executive leadership and committee members. Govenda allows seamless oversight and reporting on almost everything, including voting, attendance, and activity. All features translate perfectly onto any device, including web, mobile, and tablet.
When decisions need to be made in and outside of the boardroom, our enhanced electronic voting feature offers various options to suit every kind of voting scenario, including committee votes, simple polls, and Unanimous Written Consent. The adjustable results report allows voting members to see results specifically by a member, count, and percentage, or restrict members from viewing any results. The ability to view and collect votes electronically allows boards to make decisions quickly or poll directors for insight into essential issues.
Govenda board management software also gives administrators the ability to track and report on board attendance. Administrators can take board attendance directly in the Govenda platform. They also can export attendance into spreadsheets that show attendance by an individual board member, group or committee, meeting, or for all board members. The data that boards can gather from attendance tracking is an invaluable tool for evaluating engagement and collaboration.
Govenda is fully equipped to meet your organization’s virtual meeting needs. As the premier technology partner for board governance, Govenda’s features can streamline your boardroom and provide the virtual environment your team needs.
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