Collective Decision Making

Boards make collective decisions. This is different to executive decision making, and it's an important nuance to understand if you're presenting a proposal to the board. 

Last week I presented a webinar for the Asset Management Council on Asset Management in the Boardroom. We talked about the types of decisions boards make and also the nature of board decision making. If you're presenting a proposal to the board, there's more than one person you need to convince.

In my experience as a Chairman, I've always aimed to work towards consensus in the decisions of the board. It's important to listen to the dissenting voice. It's important to have a robust discussion and to hear different points of view.

If the board can't come to a consensus, based on the information provided in your proposal, they may ask you for further information. This could be to provide greater depth, or to add context and relevance. It means the process may take longer than you'd like, but the additional information will help the board come to a decision that best balances risk and opportunity.

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