How are we doing?

Looking at the director education and training program

How are we doing?

Looking at the director education and training program

How often do you assess whether your company’s board members have the following:

The relevant information they need

The training they need

As with other governance programs and initiatives, it is important to keep track of how that work is progressing and whether it is achieving its aims. Overall, almost half of respondents (48 percent) say they assess on an ongoing basis whether their board members have the relevant information they need. A further 19 percent say they make such an assessment at every board meeting. But more than a fifth (21 percent) say they only check once a year. Sixty percent of those at mega-caps say they conduct an ongoing assessment of whether their directors have the necessary information, compared with 53 percent of those at mid-caps, 38 percent at small caps and 39 percent at large caps. The annual assessment is particularly common among respondents at large-cap companies (41 percent).Results on information provision are broadly similar among respondents in North America and Europe. In general, assessments of whether board members have the training they need take place less frequently. Overall, 30 percent of respondents say they undertake this process on an ongoing basis, 41 percent say they do so once a year and almost a fifth (18 percent) do so on an ad hoc basis. Among respondents at small-cap companies, 29 percent assess whether directors have the necessary training on an ad hoc basis. This compares with 18 percent of those at mid-cap companies, 13 percent of those at large-cap companies and 10 percent of those at mega-caps. Eighteen percent of those at small caps make ongoing assessments, compared with 37 percent of those at mid-caps and 35 percent of those at mega-caps. A greater proportion of respondents in North America (34 percent) say they conduct ongoing assessments than do those in Europe (23 percent). The same is true of annual reviews, with 41 percent of those in North America and 32 percent of those in Europe conducting assessments on this basis. Ad hoc assessments are more frequently reported by those in Europe.

Do your board members have the following to fulfill their duties effectively?

The information they need

The training they need

The assessments governance professionals carry out appear to yield positive results: 96 percent of all respondents say their board members have the information they need to fulfill their duties effectively. In comparison, 84 percent of all respondents say their board members have the training they need to carry out their duties effectively, although 12 percent don’t know – compared with just 3 percent who are unable to answer about their board having the necessary information. Less than three quarters (71 percent) of those at small-cap companies say their directors have the training they need, although again almost a quarter (24 percent) don’t know. Ninety-seven percent and 95 percent of those at large caps and mega-caps, respectively, say their board members have the training they need.

Overall, based on the training and information it receives, how would you rate your board’s competence in being able to oversee the major issues relevant to the company?

Respondents were asked to rate – based on the training and information it receives – their board’s competence in being able to oversee the major issues that are relevant to the company. They used a 10-point scale, where one is ‘not at all competent’ and 10 is ‘extremely competent.’ Again, the results indicate high levels of confidence.Overall, respondents give their board's competence based on director training and education an average score of 8.6. This tends to rise among respondents at bigger companies, with those at small caps giving an average rating of 8.4, increasing to 8.5 at mid-caps, 9 at mega-caps and 9.1 at large caps. Almost half of respondents at large-cap and mega-cap companies say their board is extremely competent. Respondents in North America give their board an average score of 8.7, compared with an 8.4 average score awarded by those in Europe.

Comments
Respondents were also asked how they would like to improve the training and/or information their board receives. Their comments include:

'Have more horizon scanning. Have a regular program of training adapted for current and future needs that is online as well as in person’
'Ingrain the training into the board calendar’
'By providing regular updates about our industry via newsletter and making continuing education available free of cost’
'Directors need to be more forthcoming with information on the training they need’
'More encouragement for board members to attend outside programs’
'Move to online platform aligned with workforce’
'More buy-in from the CEO’
'More short training sessions (outside of regular board meetings) on specific topics like cyber-security, ESG, compliance, and so on’
'We have given thought to tracking the external training received by our directors but have some concerns that this could be used against us in certain circumstances’
'Compliance training’
'Provide more opportunities for training facilitated by outside advisers/experts, particularly in the area of ESG’
'Have a more co-ordinated, comprehensive training program with set dates and subjects for training. Other than for new directors, our ongoing training tends to be a bit ad hoc, but we are working to create a more specific process’
'Having pertinent training materials that we could send to board members’
'Find sources of objective training resources, not just lawyers and consultants trying to sell services’
'More cyber-training’
'Centralize responsibility. Seek input from board members’
'Experience sharing sessions with peers within similar industry’
'Tailored individual director development pathways and programs supported by internal and external resources. Enhanced onboarding that caters to each director’s background of experience and skills (instead of a standard program). Corporate governance best practices, certified director training programs’
'I would include more training and have certain members attend in-person training on a more regular basis’
‘Focus on cyber-security training in 2023 to further increase knowledge across the board’
‘Determining and delivering training needs for each individual director can be difficult’

‘I would like to have a better method to determine the training or information individual board members need’
‘More full-board sessions with outside experts’
‘Our directors benefit from third-party presentations’
‘More time and attention should be allocated to education/information-sharing on the broader issues affecting our company and the role those matters play in creating shared value for all stakeholders. To do this, board members need to demonstrate more curiosity and dedicate more time to engage in these broader themes’
‘More automated onboarding, more individual training opportunities, more financial literacy’
‘Using compliance learning software’
‘I wish we had more time’
‘Ongoing program defined yearly (more systematic) and wider scope of themes (not focused on company only). For example, mega-trends and out-of-the-box thinking, outside experts, and so on’
‘By having better visibility of how other companies handle this – what good looks like. Also, a clearer idea on training providers that are of the right caliber to deliver training at a level appropriate to directors of a multi-billion-dollar business. More time allowed in the board’s calendar to hold live training sessions rather than relying on asynchronous reading materials’
‘Have more options available year-round for use when time allows, and tracking of this’
‘No active training program is implemented. But board members regularly receive the information they need’
‘A formal platform for board orientation and training would be valuable. We are starting to look into this type of educational platform’
‘More outside experts to come in and share perspectives’
‘Provide online training on corporate code of conduct and implicit bias as mandatory for board members every two years. Would like to post monthly topics of interest to board portal for review by board members’
‘Have available a collection of external resources (both free and paid-for) for additional training at each director’s election’
‘I’d like to centralize it to track it better’
‘Outside providers could offer brief Zoom call training’
‘Introduce a standing education agenda item for the governance committee and create a mandate for ongoing education with a list of resources’
‘Information can always do with being more concise’
‘Provide access to online specific aspects pertinent to group’
‘To customize it to directors’ needs’