Building better boards: Why firms must accelerate diversity in leadership.

The Covid-19 pandemic has helped crystallise the need to renew efforts on boardroom diversity in UK firms, it has thrown a spotlight on the relationship between companies and their stakeholders and this, in turn, has increased the need for corporates to ensure their boards are diverse. 

 There is growing pressure on boards to change. Companies can now expect to be challenged more robustly; boards may need to take more nuanced decisions; shareholders will be more forceful and active; customers and employers are more engaged; supply chain, human rights, climate risks and community relations will receive more scrutiny. The collective skillset of a board will need to change and adapt to all of this. 

Gavin Hinks hosts a round table discussion with three experts on board selection. 
The podcast will focus on: 

·       Why post pandemic, the pressure to accelerate diversity on boards will intensify

·       The present state of board diversity within the UK’s leading firms

·       The opportunities for boards to harness the benefits diversity 

·       Practical steps for firms to drive diversity on their boards forwards

Panel guests:
Kit Bingham is a partner in Heidrick & Struggles’ London office and head of the UK Board Practice. He leads searches for chairs, non-executive directors, and chief executive officers across a wide range of industries and supports board effectiveness through succession planning, onboarding, evaluation, diversity and inclusion, and talent mapping.

Doyin Atewologun  is a multiple award-winning Chartered Business Psychologist, consultant, executive coach, researcher and skilled facilitator. Doyin was the lead researcher of the 2017 Sir John Parker Review into ethnic diversity on FTSE 100 boards. She has worked with FTSE 100 businesses, United Nations agencies, the UK Civil Service and professional services firms.  She is Dean of Rhodes Scholarships at the University of Oxford and also currently holds faculty positions at Cranfield School of Management, UK; Queen Mary University of London, School of Business and Management; Lagos Business School, Nigeria and the Human Resources Management Department at University of Pretoria, South Africa.

Anthony Carey is a partner with Mazars in the UK and leads its board practice. He is also very actively involved in the firm’s contribution to thought leadership and public policy especially in relation to the future of audit, corporate governance and boardroom developments, corporate reporting and corporate responsibility. In addition, he plays a leading role in the Centre for Audit Committee and Investor Dialogue, a joint initiative between Mazars and a number of leading institutional investors.

Anthony is a chartered accountant and chartered director and is an experienced reviewer of board effectiveness across a range of sectors, including banking, insurance and the public sector. Past appointments include being a member of the FRC Financial Reporting Lab Steering Group and of the FRC’s Financial Reporting Review Panel and he also serves on the Executive of the Quoted Companies Alliance for a number of years.