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23 January 2023 / Report
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Copy LinkThis may be the most challenging—and interesting—time to serve on a US corporate board in the past few decades. Twenty years ago, boards were responding to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which followed the collapse of Enron and WorldCom, and a decade ago, they were focused on complying with a series of regulations stemming from the Dodd-Frank Act adopted after the 2008 financial crisis.
Today boards are responding to both a heightened focus on environmental, social & governance (ESG) issues[1] and a shift toward addressing the long-term welfare of multiple stakeholders.[2] This third wave of governance change is not primarily focused on compliance with new rules. Instead, it is characterized by addressing market forces—whether they be in capital markets, labor markets, or the market for goods and services.
The insights in the overview of this report and its supplements are based on 1) findings from discussions with and polls of a 2022 working group of over 240 executives from 137 companies, 2) data provided by data analytics firm ESGAUGE, and 3) a survey of 80+ general counsel and corporate secretaries.
The publication is divided into five parts:
[1] Merel Spierings and Paul Washington, The Role of the CEO in Driving ESG, The Conference Board, November 2022.
[2] Charles Mitchell at al., Toward Stakeholder Capitalism, The Conference Board, December 2021.
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