Transformation through the Boardroom
Aristotle famously said that courage is the first of human qualities because it’s the quality that guarantees the others. Courage is what the other virtues depend on as a foundation. Without courage, all other virtues lose their meaning. Boards may have ability, may have understanding, may have a moral compass and may even have desire, but all these qualities become meaningless if boards don’t display courage. Courage is the most important virtue in governance because without daring, boards won’t let go of the familiar and act on transformation opportunities.
Today’s mainstream governance paradigm has not been designed with transformation in mind and is not well suited to the ambitions of companies wanting to seriously undertake transformational activities as part of their strategies. Today’s governance paradigm is fundamentally about ‘protecting’ rather than ‘creating’. Such a philosophy leads in turn to governance practices that are mainly focused on monitoring and managing risks rather than on seizing transformation opportunities.
This governance methodology helps directors with fine-tuning their own ability, their understanding and their courage, so that a board can lead the organisation enduringly in one of the most transformational times in human history.