Someone can be great for a certain situation, but when the business environment changes, that same person may not be right anymore. As the chair, you’re not allowed to sit on the fence.”ĬEOs are horses for courses. “You have to form a view as to whether the incumbent CEO is part of the solution or part of the problem. It’s either one or the other - and, as the chair, you’re not allowed to sit on the fence. You have to form a view as to whether the incumbent CEO is part of the solution or part of the problem. Others get you thinking, “If that’s the worst thing you’ve faced in your career, either you haven’t learnt anything from the challenges you did encounter, or you’ve been suspiciously lucky!” They may very well be lucky, but that also means they’re untested - and why would I let my board take that risk? What should all chairs do in their first 100 days? Some will have gone through incredibly difficult circumstances, and you’ll learn a lot just by listening to them.
I usually just ask, “What’s the worst situation you’ve ever had to deal with?”, and their answer is often illuminating. “There’s one area where I want homogeneity across all board members - and that’s how they react when times get tough.” Because panic is the worst possible thing in a boardroom when you’re going through a difficult period, and you can’t have members of the team going AWOL right when you need them most.
When looking for new NEDs, I only hire those I can tell with reasonable confidence won’t run for the hills at the first sound of a gunshot. I’m very keen on having as diverse a board as possible, but there’s one area where I want homogeneity across all board members - and that’s how they react when times get tough. What qualities do you look for in directors - especially post pandemic? Sir Peter also led the Gershon Review - an influential report on public sector efficiency commissioned by the UK government. He was chair of National Grid, Tate & Lyle, and the Aircraft Carrier Alliance. Sir Peter Gershon is a trustee of the Sutton Trust and of the Education Endowment Foundation.
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