Programme Overview
Boards today are operating in an unusually demanding environment expected to steer organisations through technology disruption, sustainability pressures, geopolitical volatility and workforce transformation, while maintaining resilience and competitiveness. With many CEOs in the region signalling that business models must transform to remain viable over the next decade, boards are under growing pressure to provide sharper strategic guidance, stronger oversight and faster decision-making.
In this context, the quality of the board–management relationship has become a decisive driver of governance effectiveness. High-performing boards create an environment of high trust and high challenge: candid dialogue, timely information, and constructive tension that strengthens strategy and execution. When this relationship fails, boards either drift into micromanagement and operational interference, or become overly deferential and miss emerging risks, both of which weaken accountability and performance.
Culture further raises the stakes. The way boards engage with the CEO and executive team signals what is valued and tolerated across the organisation, shaping behaviour, risk-taking and ethical standards. A board–management compact that is unclear or unhealthy can quickly undermine strategy, risk management and reputation.
This 4-hour, in-person programme is designed for Directors and Senior Directors who want a fresh, honest look at how their boards work with management. Through high-level case work, peer dialogue and practical board labs, participants will explore power dynamics, information flows, the Chair–CEO interface, and board operating practices that enable robust oversight without slipping into micromanagement. Participants will leave with a clearer philosophy for the board–management compact and practical actions to strengthen trust, alignment and accountability.
Who Should Attend
Sitting Directors and Senior Directors of PLCs, GLCs, financial institutions, private and family-owned companies.
Board Chairs, Committee Chairs and Lead/Senior Independent Directors who play a key role in shaping the board–management relationship.
Executive Directors and CEOs who also sit on boards and wish to sharpen the way they engage with their own boards and leadership teams.
Nominee and representative directors of GLICs, institutional investors or strategic shareholders who must balance multiple expectations in the board–management interface.
Learning Outcome
By the end of this programme, participants will be able to:
Reframe the board–management relationship in today’s disruption context, recognising where boards must lean in more deeply and where they risk overstepping into operations.
Diagnose the prevailing dynamic between their board and management, including power patterns, information asymmetry, levels of challenge, and the impact of the Chair–CEO relationship.
Elevate the quality of strategic, risk and performance conversations with management, using clearer expectations, better questions and more disciplined agendas and information flows.
Strengthen trust and accountability with the CEO and executive team, including handling disagreement and difficult conversations without diluting independence or oversight.
