It still surprises me when boards do not treat the creation of an annual board calendar as an important task. What is a board calendar? A strategically thought through board calendar is the governance equivalent of a management team work plan. It lays out what needs to be done and when across the annual board cycle. On reflection, there is much that boards do not directly control. The board’s role is to govern, not manage, so operational matters are typically delegated to the CEO. In addition, individual boards do not control the proclamation of laws and regulations, that is government’s job. With the exception of a limited number of large global corporations, a board of directors cannot do much to shift economic or societal trends, nor can they force customers to buy their products or use their services.

Over the past year I have been privileged to undertake several external board reviews on behalf of client organisations. I am also the member of a board that itself engaged an expert external party to evaluate its performance. The purpose of this short article is to share the insights gained from these processes. Across a half a dozen boards in different industry sectors and at various stages of organisational growth and development, there were four recurrent governance themes on the minds of directors, including myself as an active governance practitioner. These observations are drawn from almost 30 one to one board and senior management interviews and related on-line surveys I conducted.

From a governance perspective, I support the proposed Voice to Parliament as I see it as having the potential to strengthen national governance and decision-making on First Nations issues through improved consultation. To sustainably improve governance, and government decision-making, we need permanent structures and processes to involve as many First Nations communities and individuals as possible in matters that concern them. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders have been shut out for too long.