Last updated on June 23rd, 2023 at 07:00 am
Thanks to COVID-19 pandemic the focus on how businesses are governed, and their wider social impact, is only increasing. It has proved to be a catalyst as governments, companies, investors and others continue to react to its impact and long-term consequences.
The switch to virtual
Covid 19’s impact on corporate governance structures, processes and considerations was felt almost immediately and the switch to virtual governance solutions was almost instantaneous. It was a change that governance professionals, company directors and many others had to adapt to in a very short time. And this change has continued in one form or another, and to varying degrees in 2021 also.
Virtual Board Meetings and Shareholders Meetings presented a number of challenges, more prominently the fundamental question of how to facilitate an effective meeting given that previously such meetings were not commonplace for a number of organizations. Facilitating an effective virtual meeting meant not only navigating technological challenges, juggling time zones and the inevitable home-working issues but also adapting the form and conduct of the meeting in light of its virtual format.
Besides it entailed placing greater emphasis on the need for a carefully considered meeting agenda and structure as well as the virtual meeting format also required participants to adapt soft skills developed over many years of in-person board meetings to the virtual environment.
Moreover with the relative successes of virtual-only board meetings, including the speed at which that they can be called and the ancillary benefits of a reduction in travel time and costs, mean that many companies and governance professionals are now reflecting on which of the adaptations and changes that have been made over the last 18 months should be permanent features of their governance frameworks and are willing to incorporate at least some virtual-only board meetings into their meeting schedules going forward.
The public sector and business intervention
As a consequence of COVID-19 pandemic there was a significant increase in the interventions and interactions in the business landscape from governments around the world through fiscal, liquidity, social and economic measures. With companies being subjected to further rules, regulations and requirements seeking to manage and mitigate the risks of failure, it conversely lead to a reappraisal of the relevance and cost of some of the regulation which businesses are subject to, with existing rules, regulations and requirements being relaxed either temporarily or permanently to support the competitiveness and survival of businesses.
Increased focus on ESG issues
ESG issues continue to rise up the agenda for corporates, regulators and investors, with the sustained focus on climate change and other environment issues continuing to be more focused upon. There is a growing acknowledgement that sustainable business practices are not only essential from a risk management perspective, they are also often accretive. Companies and their boards are now required to comply with a growing set of non-financial reporting requirements relating to ESG issues. Some of these are dictated by industry bodies and voluntary codes; though increasingly many of these disclosure requirements are prescribed by law, a trend which is only likely to continue.
Increased disclosure
One of the themes coming out of a wave of ESG-related regulation emerging largely out of Europe is increased disclosure by asset owners and asset managers on their ESG credentials and those of their financial products and portfolios, together with their impact on ESG factors.
Diversity and Inclusion
Diversity across multiple dimensions and experiences builds better businesses and attracts better talent, customers and investors. There is extensive evidence that companies with diverse talent and leadership have a strong competitive advantage with multiple perspectives as a key enabler of innovation, growth and profitability, and a driver of performance and value across a wide range of indicators.
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