A board member who is successful is one who takes their job seriously and makes a significant contribution. They should be able to make difficult decisions, think strategically and to keep the big picture in mind, all while offering their unique perspective based on their personal experience. A competent board of directors will help the organization achieve its goals and objectives by providing direction and oversight. They will have a strong desire to see the organization succeed, and are not unwilling to speak up.
While having lots of connections is crucial for organizations however, they should focus on recruiting people who are dedicated to the cause and willing to give their time. It is also essential to ensure that your board members possess the required skills. According https://boardcontest.com/ to Institutional Shareholder Services, the boards of Enron, Kmart, and the troubled retail company Warnaco all had board members with a variety of financial expertise and skills–including former Stanford deans who are also accounting professors as well as an important Asian financier and the former head of the U.S. government’s Commodity Futures Trading Commission. But these credentials were not enough to keep the companies from failing.
Also regular attendance at meetings is often considered an indicator of conscientious board members. As Stanford GSB adjunct faculty of corporate governance Nell Minow explains, this measure does not distinguish between boards that are good or bad. In fact attendance records for the boards of GE (which was featured on Fortune’s 2001 list of the most-admired companies) and WorldCom are similar.