The CEO and I were very satisfied with the board review and recommendations report Hanover provided. It has given us some very useful insights into how our board works and how we can improve.
When shared with the board, the report was well received and will form a most useful document for us. It contains a broad range of recommendations dealing not only with issues of detail but also more strategic issues.
To obtain the best outcome from the report, I have formed a working group to meet and review the detail of the report. The working group will be making some recommendations at our next board meeting.
Thank you for the work you have done to produce this evaluation.
- Chair, Sheffield Mutual
The Challenge
Sheffield Mutual’s Chair and CEO wanted to undertake an external Board review to compliment their internal reviews. They felt they had a good Board structure in place but wanted to make sure they were maximising everyone’s potential.
In addition, with several new members having joined the Board recently, they were keen to explore opportunities to strengthen how their Board operates and interacts with each other, how to achieve an even higher level of board effectiveness and provide the foundations for further growth and success.
The Solution
Working together, Hanover agreed a four stage process with the Chair and CEO. The steps included:
Desk research into their strategy, sector trends, challenges and opportunities and Board processes and procedures
All Board members completed a short online survey regarding their perception of the Board
All Board members had a 30 mins 1:1 discussion with one of Hanover’s Board Review experts
We observed one of their Board meetings – in person
After completing each stage, we integrated all the data collected, identified key themes in relation to strengths and areas for further consideration and provided an in-depth results and recommendations report.
We then arranged a debrief with the Chair and CEO, where we fed back the results and discussed the recommendations, helping them prioritise activities and clarify next steps.
The Outcome
Feedback from the Chair and CEO was extremely positive (see quote above).
The Chair and CEO implemented some of the ‘quick wins’ from the recommendations immediately and have since shared the report with all board members, discussed and agreed which longer-term recommendations to action, and formed a working group to move things forward.
