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HR Most Influential 2018

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HR Most Influential 2018

Helen Pitcher OBE has been quoted in HR Magazine’s latest issue.

The latest HRMI rankings were compiled in a significant year for the profession, with those making the lists demonstrating the skills needed to deal with the big HR issues hitting the news.

This time last year the name Harvey Weinstein was only just crashing onto the news agenda. Gender pay reporting had yet to reach its frantic, last-minute (for some) filing crescendo. The collapse of Carillion and the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) new corporate governance code were both still in the offing.

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Congratulations to our Chairman Helen Pitcher OBE

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Congratulations to our Chairman Helen Pitcher OBE

Congratulations to our Chairman Helen Pitcher OBE for her recent appointment as Chairman of the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

She will be Chair of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) from 1 November 2018 for 3 years. Helen will initially commence as a Commissioner, on a Chair Designate basis from 1 October 2018.

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Better Board Evaluation (Code of Practice)

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Better Board Evaluation (Code of Practice)

It really is time our industry had a Code of Practice for Board Evaluations.  Companies need guidance to get through these troubled times. So it was good news to read that the Business Secretary Greg Clark announced – as part of the insolvency safeguards – measures to develop a code of practice for external board evaluations. (see press release).

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Are British boardrooms broken?

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Are British boardrooms broken?

Boards are supposed to prevent anything that could cause harm to a company, but some still fail. Stephen Jones writing for Management Today paints a dark picture of our current state of British Boards. Leading industry experts (including Helen Pitcher OBE) offer explanations of what is causing Boards to fail and what can be done to rectify the problem.

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Board Cultivation of Succession, Diversity and Sustainability (part 1 of 2)

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Board Cultivation of Succession, Diversity and Sustainability (part 1 of 2)

There is increasing pressure on boards’ to plan their own succession as well as oversee the executive pipeline, with a strong focus on diversity. This stems from the need to create sustainable businesses with a positive, transparent culture that can be ‘passed on’ through generations of CEO and board transitions, and societal pressure for greater diversity in boards and companies to mirror their customer base and the host society. While the notion of having a ‘social licence to operate’ is in its infancy in Europe, there is an increasing need for businesses to show they are good corporate citizens, with lobby groups focused on fair tax payment, customer and employee advocacy, custodianship of the environment, and positive social impact.

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Galvanising men to promote workplace cultural change and foster equality

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Galvanising men to promote workplace cultural change and foster equality

The Women’s Business Council and the Men as Change Agents (MACA) working group launched their MACA toolkit on April 9th from Number 10 Downing Street. The MACA toolkit provides ideas for business leaders to drive towards gender balance in their teams and close the gender pay gap and foster equality in the workplace.

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Board Best Practice: Succession Planning

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Board Best Practice: Succession Planning

Written by Team NEDonBoard

On Jan 30th, NEDonBoard held its best practice evening on succession planning. Following an initiative by NEDonBoard, the professional body for non-executive directors and board members in the UK, chaired by Helen Pitcher OBE, we host a panel evening to present this new guide. NEDonBoard raises governance standards on boards across the UK by providing board best practice guidance on succession planning.

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Ten Networking Strategies to a Seat on the Board

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Ten Networking Strategies to a Seat on the Board

Written by Helen Pitcher OBE, for INSEAD Knowledge Career Blog

Changing careers at mid-life is an option for more and more executives. Some choose early retirement, others are nudged towards the door, and others decide that doing something that they love is more meaningful and they can afford to get off the corporate track.

Becoming a NED is often considered the next logical professional step after an executive role. NEDs gain new skills, enlarge their networks and better understand other industries. But the competition is tough and it can be difficult to land that first NED position.

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How to Be a Good Board Chair

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How to Be a Good Board Chair

By Stanislav Shekshnia for Harvard Business Review

INSEAD’s Corporate Governance Centre have launched a research project asking the questions: What are good practices for the Board chair’s role, and how do they differ from the traditional practices of CEOs and top executives?

The research included a survey of 200 board chairs from 31 countries, 80 interviews with chairs, and 60 interviews with board members, shareholders, and CEOs. 

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A new strategic direction for board directors

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A new strategic direction for board directors

Published in Governance, November 2017 Issue 279

Helen Pitcher argues that boards need to be opened up to wider thinking, diverse viewpoints, multifaceted experience and real-world engagement to make them increasingly relevant in a modern, dynamic business environment

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Succession Planning: A Potent Weapon for the Boardroom

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Succession Planning: A Potent Weapon for the Boardroom

In the business world, the legacy of inadequate succession planning can include both a strategic mess and a large bill of financial expenses. Despite this, sadly there is no shortage of examples in the media headlines of the occasions when it happens, even with the best will in the world for exemplary corporate governance in our publicly listed boardrooms. 

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INSEAD Corporate Governance Centre Scaling New Heights

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INSEAD Corporate Governance Centre Scaling New Heights

Today, in a Special Edition on INSEAD Directors Forum newsletter, it was announced that from 1st September 2017, INSEAD Corporate Governance Initiative (ICGI) will take on a new identity as INSEAD Corporate Governance Centre (ICGC).

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Changes in Leadership at INSEAD International Directors Network

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Changes in Leadership at INSEAD International Directors Network

The INSEAD IDP Network Committee today announced that Helen Pitcher, OBE, was elected as new Chair and President of the INSEAD International Directors Network committee, following the annual AGM held on October 14, 2017. Helen takes over from previous chair Christoper de Mattos.

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Creating an Effective Board

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Creating an Effective Board

An article by Helen Pitcher OBE for the Company Secretary’s Review
Volume 41, Issue 1, June 2017

This article from Helen Pitcher OBE, Chairman of Advanced Boardroom Excellence looks at the role of the Chairman and the Company Secretary in the design of a Board information architecture and information management strategies.

The art of board effectiveness: Structure, strategy and healthy dynamics make for better boards and better business

The art of board effectiveness: Structure, strategy and healthy dynamics make for better boards and better business

By Helen Pitcher OBE for Ethical Boardroom : Spring 2017

In the 25 years since the Cadbury Report on corporate governance, how have boards been doing? Are boards able to understand and analyse what makes them effective and successful? Can they articulate and illuminate the characteristics of an effective board?

Helen Pitcher advises HRDs to take a structured approach to career planning in 2017

By Helen Pitcher for HR magazine

January is as good a time as any to reassess life and career goals. However, as with nearly all New Year ‘resolutions,’ it is important to ensure it is not a seasonal ‘flash in the pan’.

What is more conducive to effective career planning is a six month rolling review of whether you are achieving your stated goals. This however implies that you have taken time, soundings and articulated your stated goals in the first place! And that you do not review your goals achievement in isolation, but use a trusted mentor, coach or experienced friend to walk through progress and obstacles.

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