Articles

Latest Insights

Perspectives on governance, AI transformation, and operational leadership — updated regularly.

Agentic AI and the Accountability Vacuum — What Boards Cannot Delegate

When AI agents execute transactions and route approvals without waiting for human instruction, governance faces a structural problem: accountability cannot be delegated to an algorithm. This article examines what boards actually need to govern when autonomous systems act on behalf of the organization.

Oct 4, 20266 min

AI & Technology

When the Agent Acts Without You: What Boards Need to Govern in the Age of Autonomous AI

Agentic AI systems are making autonomous decisions in enterprises before boards have established governance frameworks to address them. The shift from AI that advises to AI that acts requires fundamentally different oversight structures—and most organizations have not yet made that transition.

Sep 16, 20266 min

Governance

The Board Information Architecture Model: Getting the Right Information to the Right Directors

The first board meeting I ever chaired as a chair who built a board from scratch lasted four hours. We had 340 pages of materials.

Sep 14, 20266 min

Governance

The Shareholder Activism Playbook: How Boards Must Govern Proactively to Outmaneuver Activist Investors in 2026

With 93% of executives believing board directors should be replaced and activists increasingly targeting governance gaps, boards must shift from defensive postures to proactive governance. This article examines how board refreshment, AI oversight, geopolitical risk management, and year-round shareholder engagement form the essential playbook for outmaneuvering activist investors in 2026.

Sep 2, 20266 min

Industrial Transformation

The Decarbonization Governance Gap: How Industrial Boards Must Move from Net-Zero Pledges to Accountable Execution in 2026

Industrial boards have made bold net-zero pledges, but fewer than 15% of heavy industrial companies are on track to meet their 2030 interim targets. This article examines the governance failures driving this gap and provides actionable recommendations for boards in hard-to-abate sectors to move from symbolic commitments to accountable execution.

Aug 26, 20266 min

Governance

The Board Assessment Illusion: Why Annual Self-Evaluations Are Failing Governance — and What High-Performing Boards Do Instead

Most board self-assessments have become performative compliance exercises that fail to identify genuine governance weaknesses. High-performing boards take a fundamentally different approach, using third-party facilitation, individual director evaluations, and behavioral metrics that connect directly to board composition and refreshment decisions.

Aug 19, 20266 min

AI & Technology

Governing Delegated Authority: How Boards Must Oversee Agentic AI in 2026

Agentic AI systems that act autonomously—planning, executing transactions, and operating without constant human intervention—represent a fundamental shift from tools to delegates. Boards must now establish governance frameworks for delegating authority to non-human actors, particularly as EU AI Act enforcement creates new legal imperatives for oversight, accountability, and human intervention mechanisms.

Aug 9, 20266 min

Governance

The Compensation Committee's Blind Spot: Why Pay-for-Performance Is Failing Boards in 2026

Despite sophisticated pay-for-performance structures and high say-on-pay approvals, compensation committees are failing to drive genuine long-term value creation. The blind spot lies in peer benchmarking ratchets, CEO fixation at the expense of pipeline talent, and superficial ESG metric integration—requiring a fundamental shift from reactive pay design to proactive talent governance.

Aug 5, 20266 min

Risk & Resilience

From Heatmaps to Hard Numbers: How Boards Must Quantify Risk in Financial Terms

Traditional risk heatmaps give boards a false sense of security while failing to quantify actual financial exposure. This article explores how directors must shift to dollar-denominated risk metrics, including Average Annual Loss and Monte Carlo analysis, to fulfill their fiduciary duties and make informed capital allocation decisions in 2026's evolving liability landscape.

Aug 2, 20266 min