Board service is a great method to broaden your perspective and help you look at an organisation in its entirety rather than just the functional areas that you have supervised. It also exposes you the wide range of challenges and issues that businesses confront. You might have to make tough decisions that will affect individuals negatively, such as deciding on redundancies, or closing down a branch. These scenarios teach you to think objectively and not be influenced by your own emotions or those of your colleagues.

Another question that is often raised is how to ensure a broad range of voices are heard during discussions and in the decision-making process. Boards employ a variety methods to achieve this. Some boards encourage directors to play devil’s advocate in meetings, while others make use of whiteboards for brainstorming and brainstorm possible solutions prior to making decisions. This takes the decision-making process away from the individual’s personality and can help avoid groupthink.

Boards can improve their effectiveness by being willing to challenge long-standing traditions. A number of board members, for instance are re-examining committee structures. They are questioning whether they serve their purpose and provide a reliable method to manage meetings. They are looking for innovative methods to detect patterns and hidden insights in digital and data tools.

https://theseboard.com/creation-development-and-operation-of-your-advisory-board/