The Better Boards Podcast Series

Send us a text“The board should establish the company’s purpose, values and strategy, and satisfy itself that these and its culture are aligned. All directors must act with integrity, lead by example and promote the desired culture.” Corporate Governance Codes around the globe are clear and yet the root cause of many corporate failures points to a toxic culture. It is one thing to write down on paper and another to make it happen in the boardroom. Welcome to the Better Boards podcast series. In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Alison Platt about Post-pandemic challenges: Purpose, values, strategy and cultural alignment.I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. Our mission at Better Boards is to contribute to creating better boards. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfill our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, I speak with those that service boards about topics that are ranked high on the agenda.Alison is on the Board of Tesco (FTSE 50), ‘Dechra’ (FTSE150) and Spectrum Life and is Chair of Legal & General’s business, LGFA. She is an advisor to Huntswood. She was previously on the board of Cable & Wireless Communications, Bupa Arabia, Max Bupa India and the FCO. She received a CMG in 2011. Alison was CEO of Countrywide plc between September 2014 and January 2018. Prior to that, she spent over twenty years in healthcare and financial services with Bupa. Alison is a member of the steering group of the Hampton Alexander Review and was previously the Chair of 'Opportunity Now’.How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textSocial studies provide clear evidence that more diverse boards are more effective. Organisations that are governed by more diverse boards are less likely to get embroiled in scandals and are financially more successful. The business case is very clear and yet diversity is all but the start. What counts is the integration of people in the boardroom of different gender, different race, different colour, different religion and different background. Welcome to the Better Boards podcast series. In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Yetunde Hofmann about Post-pandemic challenges: Integration – the elephant in the boardroom?I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. Our mission at Better Boards is to contribute to creating better boards. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfil our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the months, I speak with those that service boards about topics that are ranked high on the agenda.Yetunde is a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the People, Culture and Remuneration Committee at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) where she is also Champion for the Middle East.  She is a Non-Executive Director of Treatt Plc, and a member of their Audit, Remuneration and Nominations Committees.  She is a Board Trustee at the Institute of Business Ethics (IBE), Board Trustee and Chair of the People, Culture and Remuneration committee of The Education Development Trust, a Visiting Fellow at University of Reading’s Henley Business School and a Board Mentor at Criticaleye, the peer to peer Board level Community. How can we help you and your board? We at Better Boards are delighted to hear from you. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textMany directors at the beginning of their directorial career often worry that they will not make the impact they want or that they expect to make. This trend is more pronounced with directors who are women and those from a minority background. But how can new board members find their voice in the boardroom?Welcome to the Better Boards podcast series. I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. In this podcast, I am delighted to speak to Orna NiChionna. Orna spent 18 years at McKinsey’s London office, where she was the first woman to be elected partner. Since leaving McKinsey she has served on many boards including Bupa, HMV and Royal Mail. She has been an advisor to Apax LLP and to EdenMcCallum LLP. She is currently on the boards of Burberry and Saga and is Chair of Founders Intelligence. She was Chair of the Soil Association for 6 years and is currently Deputy Chair of the National Trust. How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textBuilding an inclusive and diverse workplace that draws on the talents of all of the people, is vital to any Economy. If companies are not recruiting from the whole of society, then they are missing out on talent. Back in 2017, Sir John Parker led a review into the ethnic diversity of boards in the UK. In the light of the new Parker Review report in February this year by EY, their sponsor, which revealed ‘slow progress’ suggesting it will be challenging for FTSE100 to hit the ‘One by 2021’ target set in 2017, we ask why does ethnic diversity matter in British boardrooms?Welcome to the Better Boards podcast series. In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Joëlle Warren and Khurram Hussain.I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. Our mission at Better Boards is to contribute to creating better boards. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfil our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Joëlle Warren MBE, DL is the Founding Partner and Executive Chair of Warren Partners which appoints Executive and Non-Executive Directors to boards and their senior leadership teams.  Joëlle is passionate about improving effectiveness in the boardroom through achieving the right balance of skills, diversity and experience and is a regular speaker on the business benefits of boardroom diversity in all its forms.  She was appointed MBE in 2016 for Services to Business. Her Non-Executive Director experience includes serving on boards in the university, charity and hospitality sectors and she is a member of the North West Business Leadership Team and the CBI’s SME Council.Khurram Hussain is a Consultant Partner with Warren Partners and supports executive and Non-Executive appointments across a range of complex organisations, including established PLCs and high-growth ventures. He has a passion for identifying and engaging highly talented executives with the ability to transform businesses in the UK and internationally. He has a particular interest in empowering clients to build truly diverse and inclusive Boards and leadership teams that can collectively outperform and deliver sustainable change. Prior to joining Warren Partners, he was an associate with a global search firm. He started his career with IBM Integrated Technology Services in the Global Services division.How can we help you and your board? We at Better Boards are delighted to hear from you. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textBankers around the globe are getting ready for a wave of corporate takeovers. Covid-19 has changed the position of many private and family-owned businesses and they are forced to exit earlier than expected. Others had to put plans on hold to see how Covid pans out. While it is easy to build the case for mergers and acquisitions on paper, most fail and destroy value for their shareholders.  Welcome to the Better Boards podcast series. I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. I am delighted to speak with one of the most respected Chairmen in the UK - Philip Aiken. Phil is the mastermind behind combining AVEVA and Schneider Electric’s industrial software business. The merger is widely regarded as a success. The story does not end there. This week it was announced that the firm is buying data company Osisoft in a deal expected to boost its market value to more than £10billion making Aveva Britains the most valuable software firm. Aveva plc is listed in London on the FTSE100. Phil Aiken has just under 50 years of experience in industry and commerce. He is Non-Executive Chairman at Aveva Plc, Chairman of Balfour Beatty plc and the Australian Day Foundation, Non-Executive Director of Newcrest Mining Limited and Director of Gammon China Limited. Previously Phil had numerous high-profile Executive and Board roles in the energy and utility industry in organisations like BHP Billiton, National Grid plc and Macquarie Bank (Europe).How can we help you and your board? We at Better Boards are delighted to hear from you. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textCOVID-19 has brought unprecedented challenges. Companies around the world had to rise to the occasion at a speed they previously could not have imagined. Across industries, leaders in the governance profession had to adjust how they work - and what role they should play.Welcome to the Better Boards podcast series. In this episode, I am delighted to talk with David Press about “Resilience in the governance market.”I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. Our mission at Better Boards is to contribute to creating better boards. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfill our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, I speak with insiders that have a seat on the table and those that provide professional services about topics that rank high on the agenda.David has specialised in the recruitment of company secretaries since 1999 and is one of the founding directors of DMJ. He is widely recognised as a leader in his field and the recruitment partner of the ICSA/The Chartered Governance Institute. David’s expertise lies in senior hires, including executive search and the development of aspiring company secretaries as they seek to enter the profession. The annual salary survey for Company Secretaries serves as a reference point for the profession in the UK.How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textGovernments around the globe are initiating mega projects to revive their economies. It is in all our interests that these megaprojects are well managed. I am talking with Prof Bent Flyvbjerg about Post-Pandemic challenges: Managing megaprojects.I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. Our mission at Better Boards is to contribute to creating better boards. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfill our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, I speak with those that service boards about topics that are ranked high on the agenda.In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Prof Bent Flyvbjerg.Bent Flyvbjerg is the first BT Professor and inaugural Chair of Major Programme Management at Saïd Business School and a Professorial Fellow of St Anne’s College.Flyvbjerg is the most cited scholar in the world in megaproject management. He serves as advisor and consultant to government and business, including the US and UK governments and several Fortune 500 companies. He is an external advisor to McKinsey and other consultancies. He has worked on some of the largest projects in the world, on all aspects from front-end planning, delivery, and rescue of failing projects.How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textWelcome to the Better Boards podcast series. I am Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfil our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, I speak with those that are at the serving boards about topics that are high on a board’s agenda.In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Susan Hooper.Susan is Chair of  Caresourcer.com and sits on the Boards of Uber UK, The Rank Group plc and Affinity Water Ltd.. Susan is also a Director of Chapter Zero, an organisation dedicated to providing education, insight and support on climate change to Non-Executive Board Directors and Chairs and actively involved in several start-ups in property and medical technology.Prior to her plural life, Susan was Managing Director of British Gas Residential Services, Chief Executive of Acromas Group Travel Division and held senior roles at Royal Caribbean International, Avis Europe, PepsiCo International, McKinsey & Co, and Saatchi & Saatchi living in over 7 countries worldwide.How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Thank you for listening.Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textWelcome to the Better Boards podcast series. I am talking with Mark Tennant about Post-Pandemic challenges: the role of the Chair in managing investor relations.I am Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. Our mission at Better Boards is to contribute to creating better boards. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfill our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, I speak with those that serve boards - about topics that rank high on the agenda.In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Mark Tennant.  Mark has extensive experience chairing boards in the UK, Singapore and Hong Kong. His experience ranges from small start-ups through plc boards to trade bodies and charities.Mark is Chairman of BMO Private Equity Trust plc, Scottish Land and Estates, the trade body for landowning in Scotland, Centrica Pensions, a Non-Executive Director of Unit Trust of India International and a Trustee of the Royal Hospital Chelsea.Previously he chaired the boards of Scottish Financial Enterprise, the trade body for financial services in Scotland, Scottish Stockbrokers Bell Lawrie White Ltd, Hill Samuel Unit Trusts and Hill Samuel Private Clients Ltd. Mark also has broad political experience, having stood for Westminster against Gordon Brown in 1992 and as a candidate for the Highlands and Islands in the European elections of 1994. How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.

Send us a textWelcome to the Better Boards podcast series. I am Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards. We make the boards of the most ambitious organisations more effective. We do this by providing clients with an evidence-based approach for board evaluations and board development programmes. To fulfil our mission, we give a voice to all who are care about creating better boards. Every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, I speak with those that are at the serving boards about topics that are high on a board’s agenda.All the views expressed in our podcasts are the views of our podcast partners and NOT those of Better Boards. In this episode, I am delighted to talk with Laura McNeil.  Laura is Assistant Company Secretary and International Share Plans Manager at Blue Prism Group plc, an AIM-listed robotic process automation software company. Prior to this, she has held company secretarial roles at FTSE250 retailer N Brown Group and AIM-listed NWF Group. Laura was named as an innovator on DMJ & Computershare’s Governance Hot 100 2020 list. She has spoken about automation and how company secretaries can embrace technology at ProShare, The Governance Institute, and AWCS events.How can we help you and your board to become more effective? We at Better Boards are always delighted to hear from you. Get in touch. You can best reach us at info@better-boards.com. Remember to subscribe and never miss an episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series. It’s available on Apple, Spotify, or Google. To find out how you can participate in the Better Boards Podcast Series or for more information on Better Boards’ solutions, please email us at info@better-boards.com.