Board & CEO Services

Boards are increasingly having to deal with sudden departures of executive leaders, prompting a rethink on how to prepare for the unexpected.

Boards are stepping up efforts to hasten director turnover and make room for the “next generation of directors.” The pros and cons of the new direction.

The role of the compensation committee is changing dramatically, creating a new level of accountability. But will some new duties become overwhelming?

A new Korn Ferry study of the 100 largest publicly traded REITs shows how far their boards’ efforts to increase diversity have come —and how far they still have to go.

A new SEC plan that would greatly expand mandatory climate-related disclosures could also shift the makeup and responsibilities of boards. Will it usher in a new breed of ESG director?

As the market has tanked, so have stock options for many top executives. Will retention become an issue for boards to consider?

As the business environment becomes more complex, organizations are increasingly turning to advisory boards to help sort out the issues.

As more companies pledge to achieve net-zero carbon emissions, boards face the difficult task of helping leaders balance social-impact goals and financial interests.

A legal challenge to Nasdaq’s new board-diversity rules suggests directors still aren’t comfortable with transparency.

As the well-documented problem persists, experts say boards may need to step in to help management.

For the first time since the Cold War, directors everywhere in nearly every business are faced with a geopolitical crisis impacting their companies.

Directors find themselves needing different skills to navigate frequent board meetings, board gatherings, board get-togethers, board one-on-ones, board—you get the idea.

After overseeing multiple digitization efforts, the veteran director has insights on how boards can help their firms make smart tech decisions.

New data suggests the diversity push is at a critical juncture, with a huge spike in Black director appointments last year but signs of momentum waning.

With a CEO’s ethics and personal life now mattering more than ever, more boards are directly asking candidates questions that used to be off the table.

A new book coauthored by Korn Ferry’s Dennis Carey boldly argues that compensation committees should be part of key talent searches.

Spurred on by stakeholders, boards are trying to include diversity, social impact, and sustainability goals into incentive plans. The question is, how?

The social-media-fueled run-up of some stocks last month has compensation committees debating how much executives should be able to profit from such frenzies.

Nike’s corporate responsibility, sustainability, and governance chair talks about reimagining board roles in the middle of a pandemic.

Directors of acquiring companies rarely speak out against a proposed deal. But with M&A activity heating up and CEOs anxious to buy growth, they may have to.

In a surprise shift, fewer firms are picking CEOs as outside directors. Is it a trend that makes sense?

The pandemic continues to hamper board involvement—to the point where directors question their influence.

Compensation committees face a daunting challenge—putting together 2021 incentive and bonus plans for a year that’s likely to be as uncertain as 2020.

Corporate boards are in a delicate spot if their CEO gets hit with the virus.

With so many companies filing for bankruptcy protection because of the pandemic, the battle to attract directors for when they emerge will be intense.

After rarely adjusting incentive structures, boards in the age of COVID are being forced to rethink far more long term. It’s not an easy shift.

A board member of Bed Bath & Beyond and other firms, Mary Winston talks about life as a director over these last few hectic months.

A key corporate governance outfit weighs in on the latest tensions, asking firms to release data likely to reveal slow, if any, progress on racial diversity.

Healthcare boards are among the least diverse of any industry, and as COVID-19 shows, that’s a big problem for its future.

Measuring diversity as one broad category is doing a disservice to the advancement of Black talent, experts say.

With each industry hit differently by the pandemic, this is how compensation committees are rating CEO performance.

In the midst of a global pandemic, boards need new directors who can jump in to help quickly. But can that happen in a virtual world?

Korn Ferry’s board practice leaders interviewed dozens of global 500 and Fortune 1000 directors about their coronavirus response plans.

Best-selling author Daniel Goleman explains how these key “domains” of EI may be valuable in helping board directors through unforeseen events.

How boards in this environment should help and guide—not overly direct—CEOs and other corporate leaders.

Despite growing financial challenges, experts say boards can still try to balance key purpose-movement programs.

Studies show boards rarely prepare for a crisis. How to step up their game in the outbreak era.

The Oracle of Omaha complains that firms aren’t bringing in enough “pit bull” directors. Is he right?

As CEO tenure changes, so does unrest in the rest of the C-Suite.

Directors can get slammed with a lot of work. And then there’s the case of Lucien Alziari and his first year as a board director.

Multiple big deals this year are tempting firms to get into the cash-rush. Should boards put the kibosh on some of them?

A new study shows director pay rose only 2% last year. But the push to keep comp out of the limelight continues.

Many directors will lose their seats during this record year in mergers. But some find ways to stay on.

Korn Ferry CEO Gary Burnison on how "right brain" skills can be surprisingly critical.

Korn Ferry CEO Gary Burnison says boards must deal with a new workforce reality: “career nomads” who shift jobs often.

Recent incidents suggest that getting a stamp of approval on environmental and governance issues isn’t enough.

Fewer than half of India’s firms have identified potential future CEOs. A new Korn Ferry report highlights how boards in India, or anywhere else, can improve.

Pay jumped sizeably last year, according to an early sampling. But boards seem to be shifting the mix of long-term incentives.

The elusive trick to board chemistry may include formal gut-check reviews along with more reaching out, Korn Ferry’s RJ Heckman says in his new book.

A little-noticed tax law change may have sweeping changes on what boards decide on C-suite pay.

For the most part, boards are still trying to wrap their heads around what AI really is and how to deploy it to benefit the organization

The state’s new mandate for female representation leaves boards little choice but to form strong succession plans far in advance.

Nearly half of directors are failing to anticipate business risks that are not in plain sight. How the better boards can steer management to catch the next tariff war or social snafu.

A new Korn Ferry discussion paper hopes to encourage an important transition of the Compensation Committee to a newly proposed Leadership and Talent Committee.

Questioning management is good. Dictating what it should do is not.

Forward-thinking leaders are putting their firms’ people and money on equal footing, and it starts with a simple meeting, says Korn Ferry’s Dennis Carey.

A study suggests diverse boards face a hidden problem. How smart organizations find a way to get things done.

Boards must evaluate all the risks before business conditions deteriorate, as they inevitably will.

Shareholders are increasingly questioning how a director’s pay is determined. One potential solution.

CEO Gary Burnison cautions directors to plan for changes in the economic cycle.

With more CEOs stepping down, how boards pick the next generation becomes a much bigger deal.

Savvy directors should consider staying ahead of the game to beat aggressive activist investors.

Whether a firm has a split CEO/chair structure matters less than whether it has effective, independent board leadership.

What leading boards are doing.

A look at who boards are adding to their ranks.

How boards should tackle issues from institutional investors.

A good—but also challenging—problem for comp committees.

What is your company doing to prepare?

Latinos are a rapidly growing, increasingly influential economic force, but their representation on boards remains flat.

Every board has them. Here’s how to avoid being one.

Korn Ferry Hay Group’s exclusive look at director pay at 300 companies.

Bill George shares a few suggestions on improving board performance though board evaluations.

Picked correctly, a nominating and governance committee can spur change from within.

Static peer groups are a notion of the past. In today’s busy, shifting capital markets, it is vital to have an understanding of your peer companies.

Much has changed in the corporate governance arena since the 2008 financial crisis, placing greater demands on boards than ever before.

Korn Ferry interviews Bill George (Goldman Sachs board member, fellow at Harvard Business School and former chair and CEO of Medtronic).

Improved CEO assessments may significantly boost corporate value and CEO tenure.

Bill George discusses why a healthy leadership pipeline is essential to choosing the right CEO.

Korn Ferry Hay Group’s CEO Pay Study continues to examine the key elements of compensation for CEOs at the 300 largest US public companies.

What makes the gender pay issue a board-level concern? In a word, profitability.

In recent years, lawsuits over claims of excessive director compensation have posed a new concern for board members.

Boards have shifted from talking supportively about the representation of women, to actively recruiting them and determining how best to reap the benefits this diversity can provide.

Briefings for the Boardroom interviews Bill George (Goldman Sachs board member, fellow at Harvard Business School and former Chair and CEO of Medtronic).

It was a multibillion-dollar multinational manufacturer, and I had been on the board for less than a year.

Stephen I. Sadove is the former chairman and CEO of Saks Inc.

Michael Distefano, President of the Korn Ferry Institute interviews Mit Shah, Chairman, CEO and Owner on the topic of CEO Succession.

Selecting a new chief executive is critical because so much rides on a positive outcome.

In this issue of Briefings for the Boardroom (BfB), we continue to explore the critical issue of cybersecurity.

The failure of a new CEO can be costly, but many boards still don’t employ a rigorous process designed to identify the best CEO candidates.

Interviews on the topics of Cyber Security and Cyber Preparedness

Michael Distefano, President of the Korn Ferry Institute interviews Lieutenant General (Retired) Rhett Hernandez on the topics of Cyber Security and Cyber Preparedness.

Michael Distefano, President of the Korn Ferry Institute interviews Lieutenant General (Retired) Rhett Hernandez on the topics of Cyber Security and Cyber Preparedness.

Watch our interview with Lieutenant General Franklin L. Hagenbeck on the threat of cyberterrorism.

Welcome to our inaugural issue of Briefings from the Boardroom (BfB), our all-new, digital sister of Korn Ferry’s Briefings.

This issue of Briefings is dedicated to the memory of Ruchira Pathania—a devoted wife, mother of two children, daughter, sister, colleague and Korn Ferry partner.