http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.westlakegovernance.com en-us Sat, 09 May 2026 00:40:04 +1200 Rocketspark http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/163068/four-times-twice-as-much-how-the-chairs-job-has-grown/ Some months ago, the Australian Company Director magazine quoted a senior board chair describing how the role has evolved in recent years:Where once the rule of thumb was that the chair did three times the work of a non-executive director (NED), they now do four times the work of NEDs, who in turn are working twice as hard as they used to.For the mathematically challenged, she’s saying that a board chair today has about eight times the typical workload an NED had, only a few years ago.People u... Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:22:17 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post163068 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/160954/four-tips-for-disagreeing-agreeably-and-making-better-board-decisions/ In June 2025, the Australian Institute of Company Directors’ Magazine published a useful article on ‘How boardroom face-offs can improve strategy.’The author’s core thesis was simple: the best decisions rarely emerge from easy agreement. They come from robust, respectful challenge. Or, in the words of my most influential teacher from school – ‘If we’re all thinking the same, someone’s not thinking.’The author lists five keys to a healthy board culture, which the Chair must lead... Thu, 26 Feb 2026 14:45:23 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post160954 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/132071/time-to-de-couple-audit-risk/ Ditch the Audit & Risk Committee? That’s governance heresy, surely?Bear with me for a moment:The ‘ARC’ or ‘FARC’ (Finance, Audit & Risk Committee) is often seen as vital for best practice governance. Surely it shows that directors are prioritising protection of the business and assets they’re responsible for … doesn’t it?But is this really true?What types of people do we need on these committees?For Audit, we think of financial literacy, an understanding of financial... Thu, 18 Jul 2024 12:07:49 +1200 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post132071 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/126470/risk-the-forgotten-axis/ Almost every week another building, usually in Wellington, is evacuated because it’s deemed ‘Earthquake Prone’ and either covered in plastic sheeting or left to rot, while the hapless owners consider how they’ll afford the repairs and strengthening that the engineers have mandated. This week for a change it was the turn of the South Island’s largest high school Burnside High in Christchurch.The Wellington City Council’s 2027 deadline for remediation is approaching... Fri, 05 Apr 2024 13:44:03 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post126470 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/113362/three-things-they-dont-teach-you-at-board-boot-camp/ Nobody’s born a director. We don’t grow into being a governor, the way we do with walking, talking, parenting and even, to some degree, making a success of a job. All of these are essentially skills we learn as individuals.Becoming an effective director requires a range of technical, social and communication skills, where we learn to contribute as one of a group, rather than with individual authority.When a new member joins your board, you want them to contribute as soon as possible. This is... Wed, 01 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post113362 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/108471/before-the-main-course/ Do you recognise this board? Directors arrive shortly before the scheduled start; you take your places, open your board packs and work your way through the agenda, item by item; as the chair closes the meeting, you shut your pack, gather your iPad and phone, and head to the taxi. Other than exchanging a few pleasantries when you take a break for coffee, you barely make eye contact with the other directors, let alone speak to them individually.Perhaps you’ve had some good discussion and made so... Thu, 03 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post108471 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/102899/the-shift-weve-been-expecting-in-air-new-zealands-strategy/ Has Air New Zealand’s market strategy changed – or is it simply now more obvious?I’ll start by saying that I have been a relatively frequent, usually satisfied, flyer with Air New Zealand for a long time (my Frequent Flyer number has five digits and I’ve accumulated 14 ‘banked years’ of membership).In the last three years, every airline in the world has faced challenging headwinds and has had to make tough choices. A couple of stories about our national airline in the last fortnight ... Mon, 27 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post102899 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/102898/no-such-thing-as-invisible-leadership/ Photo: RNZ / Katie Todd... Mon, 30 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post102898 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/102897/four-times-twice-as-much-how-the-chairs-job-has-grown/ The latest edition of the Australian Company Director magazine quotes a senior board chair describing how the role has evolved in recent years:‘Where once the rule of thumb was that the chair did three times the work of a non-executive director (NED), they now do four times the work of NEDs, who in turn are working twice as hard as they used to.’For the mathematically challenged, I think she’s saying that a board chair today has about eight times the typical workload an NED had, only a few... Sun, 27 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post102897 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/post/71961/ten-minutes-that-will-transform-your-zoom-board-meetings/ I’d guess that most of us have held more board meetings virtually than in person over the last 18 months. Remote meetings, still a rarity two years ago, are business as usual and here to stay.We’re learning how to make the most of them: To interpret non-verbal signals (aka body language) from only our colleagues’ faces; To stop people talking over each other, most of the time;And to manage the unusual constraint that everything we say and every facial gesture is seen by everyone ... Thu, 16 Sep 2021 12:57:52 +1200 http://www.westlakegovernance.com/blog/#post71961