What Would You Like to Talk About That We Haven’t Asked?
from
November/December 2002
Jean Picker Firstenberg, 65
CEO and Director, American Film Institute, Los Angeles
Trans-Lux
I
was at a conference once and heard something about board service that
really impressed me. It had to do with Home Depot and how board members
are required, between meetings, to visit at least two Home Depot
stores. They couldn’t be ones near your home, either. The feeling was
that unless a director really understood the experience of walking into
a Home Depot store and seeing what happens and doesn’t happen, you
really couldn’t be a meaningful voice in the boardroom. I think that’s
an example of good leadership, and it’s no wonder that the company is
successful.
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Doing Shareholders Proud
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C. McCollister Evarts, 70
Professor of Orthopaedics, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Kensey Nash
I’d
like to see some upgrades in board selection and board evaluation. The
selection process should be done with the entire board’s participation.
You want diversity. You need women and minorities. You want someone
with knowledge of the industry, or some other special talent. As for
evaluation, not many boards are doing it effectively. You have to set
some criteria and have board members make the judgments. You should
evaluate your own performance as well.
J. Michael Cook, 60
Retired Chairman and CEO, Deloitte Touche, Greenwich, Connecticut
AT&T,
Dow Chemical, Fidelity Group of Mutual Funds, HCA Inc., International
Flavors & Fragrances, Rockwell Automation International
When
something like WorldCom happens, you have to look at how certain things
are done and, of course, examine them critically. But there are some
pretty nutty ideas being talked about, like taking insurance away from
directors. You have to be kidding me. That’s like telling me I can’t
have car insurance. If people have to put all of their net worth on the
line, they won’t be on boards. I won’t.
Madeline Ludlow, 48
President and CEO, Cadence Network, Cincinnati
Oglebay Norton
Enron made directors realize this isn’t a game. Folks will be much more selective about which boards they’ll serve on.
Thomas Foster, 60
Financial and Bank Consultant, San Francisco
Bay View Bank, Bay View Capital
It’s
one thing to be fooled by a rogue accountant or CFO who does something
bad in the dark of night. But there are situations where boards waive
their own conflict-of-interest policy to go in on a get-rich-quick
scheme. That borders on dereliction.
Herbert P. Ladds Jr., 68
Chairman, Columbus McKinnon Corp., Amherst, New York
RP Adams
I
think the key job for a board right now is to reassure investors and
employees that things are being run correctly and honorably and
intelligently in their company. For example, we have made a very
conscious effort to get a great number of our employees to get to know
our independent directors, to call them by their first names, to
develop confidence in them as a group. And this has worked pretty well.
Open communication and assuring that things are right are so important,
now more than ever.
Malcolm R. Currie, 75
Chairman and CEO, Currie Technologies, Van Nuys, California
Enova Systems, Inamed, Investment Co. of America, LSI Logic
It’s
harder to get good board members these days. We’re being asked to
assume more personal responsibility than before. I wouldn’t join a
board unless it had a very healthy directors’ and officers’ insurance
policy.
Susan Golding, 57
CEO, Golding Group, San Diego; Former Mayor of San Diego
Avanir Pharmaceuticals, First Pacific Bank of California, Surebeam, Titan
The
education seminars for board members that are being offered today are
extremely useful. Continuing education is good for directors, just as
it is in any profession. I recommend it for directors regardless of how
long they’ve been on the board.
John Correnti, 54
Chairman and CEO, Birmingham Steel Corp., Birmingham, Alabama
Corrections Corp. of America, Navistar International
Boards
need to be more diverse—with women and minorities, liberals and
conservatives, Republicans and Democrats. Also, I think boards should
primarily consist of outside independent directors who are paid
reasonably. If they’re underpaid, directors lack focus, and if they’re
overpaid, it’s hard for them to make tough decisions that go against
the CEO, chairman, or management. A $60,000 to $100,000 retainer is
fine. You don’t want to sell your soul for a large retainer.
Lolan Mackey, 56
Founding Partner, Diversified Retail Solutions, Bentonville, Arkansas
Duckwall-Alco Stores
I
do feel that a lot of boards are not as diverse as they need to be.
There aren’t very many women that serve on boards. There aren’t many
African-Americans. If you look at most boards, they’re more male-driven
and not very diverse at all.
When
you’re looking for board members, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a
person who has served or is serving in a high-level position. There are
a lot of women out there in middle management who are stars—people with
the capacity to grow. You could search any company and ask them to give
you the names of four or five people that have been designated as
up-and-comers.
Michaela K. Rodeno, 56
CEO, St. Supéry Winery, Rutherford, California
Silicon Valley Bancshares
I
read that boards are having an increasingly difficult time finding
directors to put in the time and effort and take the risk of serving on
boards. Yet I see that there’s still not much improvement in inviting
more women onto boards. There are an awful lot of highly qualified
women who would be willing to take that risk if someone asked them. I
would suggest to people who recruit board members that they give more
careful thought to women directors. Sometimes I feel as if one of my
roles at the Silicon Valley Bank is to be the voice of the female
within a bunch of guys. They’re quite wonderful men, and I think they
place a value on what they perceive to be a slightly different way of
approaching things and a different point of view.
Barbara B. Grogan, 54
Chairman and President, Western Industrial Contractors, Denver
Apogee Enterprises, Deluxe Corp., Pentair
I would like to talk about ethics and integrity. Despite the headlines of corporate wrongdoing lately, it’s important to know that this is not the rule throughout the U.S. and it is not the rule throughout corporate boardrooms. We have to remember that overall, the system works. There are some days when you wonder, but in my heart of hearts I do believe that. I think we need to focus on how highly functioning corporate America is and how ethical and sound it is—not just for us but for the whole world.
