09 Sep 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Activists Shaping the Boardroom
Capital deployed by activist investors is growing and has important implications for Board competence and composition. Not least because activists may seek Board seats and/or Board refreshment. Fidelio’s focus is building Boards fit for the future and activism shows no sign of abating. Structural factors within the investment management industry are driving polarisation in investor […]
23 Aug 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Boardroom Success: “A Seat at the Table”
From a political, macro-economic and environmental perspective it’s a tough time to be a Board Member, and it’s likely to get tougher. Equally, it’s in turbulent times that Boards show their mettle and the quality of governance becomes a key differentiator. Fidelio’s focus is building Boards that add value. In the seventh iteration of Fidelio’s […]
16 Aug 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Is Your Board Adding Value?
Fidelio has a clear focus on value and in particular the Board’s contribution. Given current levels of scrutiny and the challenging environment, shareholders and stakeholders want comfort and clarity about the role of the Board in overseeing and generating value. Boards that cannot articulate this value contribution will increasingly be held to account. In Fidelio’s […]
15 Aug 2019
Fidelio – Search & Evaluation: Board Agenda H2 2019
Fidelio has a busy few months ahead with Search, Evaluation and thought leadership and we are pleased to share highlights. Our focus is aligning Boards/Executive Committees to generate value for shareholders and stakeholders. We do this through Search, Evaluation and Development and are constantly researching and exploring how Board composition and effectiveness underpin and drive […]
09 Aug 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – FinTech: Coming of Age & the Search for Talent
FinTech has become the great disruptor in Financial Services and continues to attract investor and entrepreneurial interest, with $18.3 billion of FinTech investment in the US and $13.2 billion in Europe in the first half of 2019. Exploiting the dependence of established players on legacy technology, innovative disruptive technology companies are redefining international payment systems, […]
02 Aug 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Board Evaluation: A Fork in the Road
Board Evaluation as a core tool of corporate governance is coming under increased scrutiny from government, regulators and shareholders. In the UK this has led to a formal review of the Evaluation process at the request of the UK government’s Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), prompted at least in part by the […]
26 Jul 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Tenacity & Diversity
July has been a month of climate extremes and political volatility. But the diversity challenge has never been far from the surface: Ursula von der Leyen, President-elect of the European Commission, committed to “full gender equality in [her] college of commissioners” in a speech on 16th July, asserting that “if member states do not propose […]
07 Jun 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Unlocking Value: Board Evaluations & Diversity
Fidelio was delighted to speak recently in Copenhagen on the topic of Board Evaluations and Board Dynamic at the Danish Professional Directors Association Conference. The theme is topical given the government-sponsored review being conducted by ICSA in the UK of how Board Evaluation is delivered; in the Danish market there was clear interest in what value an Evaluation adds, how […]
20 May 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Cyber Risk: A Risk For All Board Members
Cyber Risk is ever-present for companies and organisations regardless of size, sector or geography. And quite rightly, Cyber Risk features prominently on the Board Agenda. As Fidelio supports Chairs with regard to Board composition and Boards effectiveness, we see Cyber Risk raising two key questions for Boards: Does the Board have the requisite skills to […]
10 May 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Boards, Change and Shareholder Revolts
Boards confront substantial change with increasing pressure coming from the company’s own shareholders. Fidelio’s Table Talk explores the source and mechanism of that pressure; we argue that Boards can turn shareholder revolt to advantage. With the AGM season now in full swing, shareholders are being asked to vote on a variety of resolutions. Though full 2019 […]
03 May 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – The Value Equation for Boards
The scrutiny of Boards has seldom been greater. As such, Corporate Governance is often seen purely as a regulatory and compliance overlay, and the Board/Supervisory Board as a form of insurance against undesirable outcomes. And yet Corporate Governance Codes are more ambitious in the value contribution they expect from Boards: “A successful company is led […]
12 Apr 2019
“A Seat at the Table” – Old Truths and New Positives
The seventh iteration of Fidelio’s “A Seat at the Table” Programme for senior female executives and Directors will take place on 24th – 25th September 2019 at Hever Castle, Kent, UK. Are we now at an inflection point in gender balance and increased diversity on Boards? Certainly when Fidelio established “A Seat at the Table” […]
05 Apr 2019
Complexity and the Role of the Chair – A Masterclass
Against a backdrop of unprecedented disruption (in particular in the UK), today’s Chair must navigate exceptional complexity. Chairs are under pressure as never before: investors want financial performance customer expectations are constantly and rapidly changing the regulatory overlay is increasing, and not to be ignored There’s a clear trend towards increased stakeholder involvement in business […]
25 Feb 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Chair Succession Under Scrutiny
Over recent years Boards and Search firms have seen a sharp increase in scrutiny relating to Board appointments, driven both by independence and diversity requirements. That same degree of scrutiny is now being applied to Chair appointments. In Fidelio’s Board Search and Evaluation practice, for example, we‘re already seeing the implications of changing UK corporate governance […]
08 Feb 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – The Governance of Search: Effective Process; Good Outcomes
Board composition is of critical importance for shareholders and stakeholders. How Board composition and Board appointments are achieved is also attracting attention. This Table Talk reviews the link between a robust Search process on the one hand, and attracting strong Board candidates and embedding diversity and independence on the other. It’s clear from Fidelio’s Board […]
08 Jan 2019
Fidelio Table Talk – Don’t Despair of the Board Pipeline
There’s much talk about the quality and robustness of the pipeline to the Boardroom. Getting this right should be a priority for shareholders and stakeholders but building the pipeline has clearly not always attracted the attention it should have, particularly given increasing expectations for Boards of corporates and non-profits alike. Therefore, in the latter half of 2018, Fidelio […]
