CEO/Board Services

The last fifteen years have seen a significant evolution in corporate governance best practices. With greater regulatory scrutiny and raised expectations regarding risk management, most companies are looking for the board to offer more than just compliance oversight. Companies are taking a more rigorous approach to director nomination, onboarding and evaluation. They also have greater expectations of the board chair, who must instill the boardroom culture necessary for the board to be a true strategic asset for the Chief Executive Officer, management and shareholders.

We work with the board nominating committees of public and private companies, as well as not-for-profit organizations to help them identify, assess and recruit CEOs, board chairs and board members.

• Our CEO/Board Services consultants help boards determine the particular set of competencies and experiences that should be represented on the board so that it has both the subject-matter expertise to engage with management and the breadth of individual perspectives necessary to manage risk and provide effective oversight. Our extensive network allows us to look beyond the usual pool of names to find executives who meet the desired criteria; we then work closely with the nominating committee in the assessment process and in facilitating the acceptance of board nomination by the finalist candidate.
• In addition to recruiting CEOs, board chairs and board members, we design and conduct board evaluation programs that provide the board chair with an objective view of the overall board as well as individual performance.
• We also work with CEOs and board chairs on succession planning, conducting a full review of any existing plans, (or creating a plan from scratch, if necessary) to ensure they meet the standards of best practice, and then helping the board implement the plan at the appropriate time.

Key Partnerships with CEOs & Boards of Directors

Russell Reynolds Associates is a founding partner of the INSEAD International Directors Programme, an education programme for Chairs, Non-Executive Directors, CEOs, CFOs and other senior executives who have the experience necessary take on board positions. The programme comprises three modules: (i) Creating and Safeguarding Value, (ii) Implementing Effective Board Processes and (iii) Managing Critical Events. Having completed all three modules, participants may apply for the INSEAD Certificate in Corporate Governance. In 2011, the modules will take place in July, September and November at INSEAD’s Fontainebleau campus. For more information on the programme, click here.

Russell Reynolds Associates is a long-standing partner in the Yale CEO Summit, part of The Chief Executive Leadership Institute. Each year, Yale CEO Summits conducted around the world focus on the day’s most pressing leadership challenges and opportunities, at this invitation-only leaders’ conference hosted by the Yale School of Management. Russell Reynolds Associates consultants from our CEO and Board Services Practice join distinguished corporate leaders, academics and opinion leaders from across all industry sectors in open, candid discussions about leadership, strategy, and effective corporate governance. The Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute was founded in 1989 to provide original research on top leadership and lively, current educational forums through peer-driven learning for accomplished leaders across a range of sectors. Visit the Yale CELI website for more information.