A board member who is successful takes their responsibilities seriously and contributes meaningfully. They should be able to make difficult decisions, think strategically and keep the big picture in mind while bringing the perspective of their personal experience. A strong board of directors will assist the organization in achieving its mission and goals by offering guidance and oversight. They will be motivated to see the organization flourish and will not be afraid to voice their opinions.
While having a lot of connections is important for businesses however, they should focus on recruiting people who are passionate about the cause and willing to invest their time. It is also essential to ensure that your board members possess the required qualifications. According to Institutional Shareholder Services, the boards of Enron, Kmart, and the struggling retail company Warnaco all had members with a range of financial competencies and expertise–including former Stanford deans who are accounting professors as well as a prominent Asian financier and the former head of the www.boardcontest.com/what-is-an-advisory-board-and-does-your-organization-need-one/ U.S. government’s Commodity Futures Trading Commission. But these credentials weren’t enough to keep the companies from going under.
Participation in board meetings is also often regarded as an indication of a responsible member. But as Stanford GSB adjunct professor of corporate governance Nell Minow points out, this alone does not distinguish boards that are either good or bad. Attendance records for the boards of GE and WorldCom (which were both featured on Fortune’s 2001 list as the most loved companies) are similar.
