Episodes

  • Randall Peterson on Boardroom Psychology and Why Culture Beats Compliance

    Randall Peterson on Boardroom Psychology and Why Culture Beats Compliance
    Jun 17 2026
    Why do boards full of brilliant, experienced people still make catastrophic decisions?In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson sits down at London Business School with Professor Randall Peterson, Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Academic Director of the School's Leadership Institute, to argue that board failure is rarely about intelligence and almost always about behaviour. Drawing on his book Disaster in the Boardroom, Randall unpacks the predictable human dynamics, subordination to a dominant CEO, groupthink and the quiet suppression of dissent, that derail otherwise capable boards.The conversation could not be timelier. With the FRC pushing UK boards away from tick-box reporting toward outcomes under the 2026 Corporate Governance Code, and recent industry data showing that 93% of leaders blame culture rather than technology for stalled AI adoption, Randall makes the case that culture, not compliance, decides whether a board succeeds. He explores why the best directors lead with curiosity, why the chair's most important skill is listening, how to engage diverse voices rather than merely seat them, and where AI helps, and where directors quietly feeding board papers into open tools should worry.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (03:35) - From University Board to Board Scholar (05:23) - The Story behind Disaster in the Boardroom (08:10) - Capability, Culture and Collective Psychology (11:27) - What Makes Good Boards Dysfunctional (13:29) - Subordination and Groupthink (16:26) - Comply or Explain and the Limits of Compliance (21:42) - Board Evaluations and NED Certification (25:33) - The Chair as Chief Listener (30:22) - Representation versus Engagement (33:19) - Conflict and Why Voting Backfires (38:19) - Where AI Fits in the BoardroomRandall Peterson: Professor Randall S. Peterson is Professor of Organisational Behaviour at London Business School and the founding Academic Director of its Leadership Institute. He holds a PhD in social and organisational psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, and has spent more than three decades researching board dynamics, CEO personality, team conflict and the behaviour of senior leaders. His award-winning work has appeared in the Harvard Business Review, Forbes and leading academic journals, and he is co-author, with Gerry Brown, of Disaster in the Boardroom: Six Dysfunctions Everyone Should Understand. He also co-founded TalentSage, an evidence-based leadership development firm, and advises chairs, boards and regulators internationally on board effectiveness and governance culture.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Episode Insights:Board failure is usually behavioural, not technical: capable directors still fail when the culture discourages open discussion and honest challenge.Culture is measurable and decisive: a curious, learning-focused board that welcomes naive questions consistently outperforms one fixated on compliance.Subordination and groupthink are the most dangerous dynamics: once a board defers to a dominant CEO or self-censors to fit in, independent oversight quietly disappears.The chair's most important skill is listening: it both informs better decisions and creates the psychological safety directors need to speak up.Representation is not engagement: diverse voices only shape decisions when the chair actively gives them a platform, because in any group truth needs support to win.Action Points:Put culture on the agenda, not just strategy: Boards happily spend a whole day on strategy yet rarely give an hour to how they work together. Schedule an honest, recurring discussion of board culture and behaviour, treating it as a measurable driver of performance. Ask whether people feel able to raise difficult issues and challenge one another constructively.Lead with curiosity and the naive question: Prize directors who keep asking why something works the way it does, not just those with the longest CVs. Make it normal to pause on a routine item and probe it, because that is where boards uncover what they did not know they should discuss. Protect the person who asks the awkward question rather than letting the group close ranks.Reframe compliance as the floor, not the ceiling: Treat the FRC's comply-or-explain code as a baseline...
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    45 mins
  • Steven Fine on Courage, Capital and the Modern Boardroom

    Steven Fine on Courage, Capital and the Modern Boardroom
    Jun 10 2026
    What does the market see about your board that you cannot see from the inside?In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Steven Fine, Chief Executive of Peel Hunt and co-founder of the Non-Executive Director Awards, about how boards are really judged: not by internal evaluations, but by investors, analysts and markets in real time. They explore why courage now defines great non-executive directors, how the role of the chair has grown, and why shareholder connectivity matters more than ever in a derated UK market."You can have the best governance in the world and no one cares. It's not reflected in the share price." Steven Fine, Chief Executive of Peel Hunt.Fine makes a pointed case on fund flows, noting that UK pension funds hold a historic low of around 4.4% of assets in domestic equities while comparable systems hold far more. With the Pension Schemes Act 2026 now law and the FCA's new prospectus rules live since January 2026, the conversation could not be timelier. From comply or explain to the realities of listing in the US, this is a practical guide for NEDs who want to understand how capital markets keep score.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (02:45) - Inside Peel Hunt and the NED Awards (04:24) - A Forensic, Multi-Stage Judging Process (08:00) - Twenty Years On: Why the NED Role Is Harder (10:04) - Courage and What Good Looks Like Today (13:13) - Permacrisis and Calm Under Pressure (15:26) - How Investors Really Judge Boards (18:56) - Governance, Valuation and De-Rating (22:33) - Passives and Becoming Beholden to Maths (24:43) - US Versus UK Listings and Reform (30:33) - Preparing to IPO as a Public Company (34:11) - Board Leadership Versus CompositionSteven Fine: Steven Fine is Chief Executive of Peel Hunt, a UK-focused specialist investment bank serving public and private companies across the FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and AIM. He joined the firm in 2006 and led its management and staff buy-out from KBC Bank in 2010, becoming CEO in 2016. Earlier in his career he was a founder member of D. E. Shaw Securities International and ran Japanese and Asian equity, convertible and derivatives operations in Tokyo. He is co-founder of the Non-Executive Director Awards, now in their 20th year, and has judged them for over 15 years. Steven also serves as Deputy Chair of the FCA Markets Practitioner Panel and as a non-executive director of the Quoted Companies Alliance and RetailBook, giving him a rare vantage point across capital markets, governance and board performance.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Episode Insights:The market is the ultimate external examiner of a board: internal effectiveness reviews can become box-ticking, while investors and analysts judge governance in real time.Courage now defines great non-executive directors: the willingness to challenge, ask awkward questions and speak up matters more than technical expertise.Good governance does not automatically lift valuations; without fund flows and advocacy, even well-run UK companies can stay de-rated and overlooked.The UK's listing problem is one of capital, not rules: regulatory reform has cut friction, but domestic pension allocations to UK equities sit near historic lows.Comply or explain may be better understood as explain or comply: Fine backs the push to celebrate explanations and challenge needless disclosure.Action Points:Build genuine shareholder connectivity: Treat investor relationships as a board-level priority, not a job left solely to the executive or the IR team. Map who actually owns and votes your stock, including the multiple fund managers that can sit behind a single name. Offer non-executives access to major shareholders rather than waiting to be asked.Stop marking your own homework: Challenge how your board runs its effectiveness review and resist the urge to score everything nine or ten out of ten. Bring genuine external perspective into the process and act on uncomfortable findings. Use the review to surface real gaps in judgement and behaviour, not simply to satisfy the code.Lead with courage, not consensus: Encourage every director to ask the questions others assume are already answered. Make space for quieter voices and ensure the chair draws out challenge rather than smoothing it over. In a period...
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    45 mins
  • Helle Bank Jorgensen on Board Leadership in the Age of AI

    Helle Bank Jorgensen on Board Leadership in the Age of AI
    Jun 3 2026
    How should boards lead when judgement, not information, has become the scarcest resource in the room?In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Helle Bank Jorgensen, Global Managing Director for Board Development at Board Intelligence and founder of Competent Boards, about what board leadership looks like now. They move from a world of separate risks to one of interconnected risk, where a capital decision is also a climate, geopolitical and reputational decision, and where the old governance instincts are no longer enough.Helle argues that boards rarely fail through a lack of effort or data; they fail by waiting too long for a certainty that never comes. With AI moving quickly into governance, and Lloyds becoming the first FTSE 100 company to bring an AI tool into its boardroom, the conversation asks where augmentation ends and abdication begins. From stewardship versus strategy to scenario planning, board culture and keeping judgement human, this is a practical guide for NEDs who want to contribute, not simply attend.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (01:12) - Introducing Helle Bank Jorgensen (03:05) - From Separate Risk to Interconnected Risk (04:06) - Governance, Stewardship and the Strategist Board (07:16) - Activity versus Contribution (10:51) - Leading in a Matrix World (12:42) - Thinking the Unthinkable (15:49) - Culture, Courage and Signal from Noise (21:22) - AI in the Boardroom: Master or Servant? (28:52) - A Director's AI Playbook (31:00) - Why Boards Wait, and How to Decide (34:48) - Navigating ESG and StakeholdersHelle Bank Jorgensen: Helle Bank Jorgensen is Global Managing Director for Board Development at Board Intelligence and the founder and former CEO of Competent Boards, the governance education platform acquired by Board Intelligence in 2025. An internationally recognised authority on board effectiveness, governance and sustainability, she has spent three decades turning environmental, social and governance risk into long-term value, and has educated directors in more than 60 countries through the Global Competent Boards Designation. She is the author of The Future Boardroom: How to Transform in Turbulent Times and Stewards of the Future, a number one Amazon bestselling author, and was inducted into the Corporate Governance Hall of Fame by IR Magazine.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Episode Insights:The scarce resource in the boardroom is no longer information but judgement; AI widens access to insight, yet makes disciplined decision-making harder, not easier.Stewardship reframes the board's job from "are we doing things right?" to "are we doing the right things for long-term resilience and value?", with the strongest boards acting as strategists.In a matrix world, every decision is at once financial, geopolitical, environmental and reputational, so directors must sense around corners rather than predict a single outcome.AI belongs in board preparation, not in the vote; it can make directors the best-informed people in the room, but accountability and judgement cannot be outsourced to a bot.Boards rarely fail by acting too quickly; they fail by waiting for certainty, so the real skill is deciding which few risks matter and acting before the picture is complete.Action Points:Decide to be the master, not the servant: Agree as a board how AI tools will and will not be used before you adopt them. Treat AI as a way to ask sharper questions and test your own thinking, not as a substitute for judgement. Keep accountability for every decision firmly with the directors around the table.Run real scenario planning: Build the muscle to think the unthinkable rather than assuming the future will resemble the past. Schedule sessions that stress-test severe risks, from cyber to climate, as live rehearsals rather than compliance exercises. Luck favours the prepared, so know what you would do before you have to do it.Separate signal from noise: Resist the assumption that more data means more insight, because volume on its own simply creates more noise. Insist that management presents structured, prioritised information that surfaces insight rather than raw reporting. Agree the few critical questions that genuinely matter and hold the board's attention there.Protect AI judgement ...
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    40 mins
  • What Makes Governance Actually Work? Maureen Beresford on Judgement, Accountability and the UK Code

    What Makes Governance Actually Work? Maureen Beresford on Judgement, Accountability and the UK Code
    May 27 2026
    What does good governance actually look like when the rules keep changing and the pressure keeps rising? In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Maureen Beresford, Director of Corporate Governance and Stewardship at the Financial Reporting Council, about why governance is fundamentally about judgement, not tick boxes, and why the best boards are those brave enough to explain rather than simply comply.They explore the philosophy behind the UK Corporate Governance Code, the power of the "comply or explain" principle, and why so many boards still default to compliance when flexibility is exactly what the Code offers. At a time when 88 companies left the London Stock Exchange last year and the government has scrapped the long-awaited audit reform legislation, the conversation could not be more timely.From the new Provision 29 declaration on material controls to the evolving role of proxy advisors and the future of investor stewardship, Maureen makes a compelling case that governance is an art, not a science, and that the boards which lead best are those prepared to think for themselves.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (02:06) - A Career in Governance: From Civil Service to the FRC (03:09) - Where the FRC Fits in the Governance Ecosystem (05:49) - What Governance Is Actually For (07:08) - Governance as a Grey Area: Judgement over Certainty (09:23) - The 2024 Code: What Changed and Why (11:57) - Comply or Explain: Boards Being Brave (14:42) - Proxy Advisors, Investors and the Trust Gap (20:08) - Transparency, Reporting and the Cost of Governance (23:25) - Provision 29: The New Declaration on Internal Controls (31:00) - Stewardship, Investment and the Public-Private Debate (37:10) - The Crystal Ball: Future Skills and Challenges for BoardsMaureen Beresford: Maureen Beresford is the Director of Corporate Governance and Stewardship at the Financial Reporting Council, the UK regulator responsible for corporate governance, reporting and stewardship. A former civil servant for over 20 years within the Department for Business, Enterprise and Industrial Strategy, Maureen moved to the FRC on secondment in 2017 to work on the review of the UK Corporate Governance Code and subsequently helped introduce the Wates Principles for Large Private Companies alongside Sir James Wates. Appointed Head of Corporate Governance in 2020, Maureen led the comprehensive review that produced the Corporate Governance Code 2024 and was instrumental in launching the FRC's annual assessments of governance reporting. In 2024 Maureen became Acting Director and was appointed to the full-time Director role in June 2025, taking on responsibility for the Stewardship Code alongside corporate governance.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Episode Insights:Governance is fundamentally about conversations, judgement and accountability, not checklists or compliance; a tick-box approach is, in Maureen's view, "potentially worthless."An explanation under the "comply or explain" framework is just as good as compliance, and often better, because it demonstrates that the board is actively thinking about governance rather than blindly following the Code.Provision 29 of the 2024 Code requires boards to declare the effectiveness of their material controls, but it deliberately does not prescribe which controls, how many, or how to write the declaration; that judgement rests with the board.The relationship between boards, proxy advisors and investors is more nuanced than many assume; proxy advisors say they do highlight explanations to investors, and investors say they do not always follow proxy advice automatically.Boards should be more fluid in their composition, willing to refresh before the nine-year convention if needed, and mindful that overboarding in a world of perpetual crisis can leave individual companies without adequate director attention.Action Points:Embrace the power of explanation: Review your board's governance reporting and ask whether you are defaulting to compliance simply to avoid a perceived black mark. Challenge yourselves to identify at least one provision where an honest, well-reasoned explanation would better reflect how your company is actually governed, and commit to making that case transparently in your next ...
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    40 mins
  • Strategic Risk Management for Boards: UK Economy, Capital and Growth with Simon French

    Strategic Risk Management for Boards: UK Economy, Capital and Growth with Simon French
    May 13 2026
    How should boards be thinking about risk, capital and growth when the UK economy is structurally constrained and the geopolitical landscape is shifting beneath their feet?In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Simon French, Chief Economist and Head of Research at Panmure Liberum, about why macroeconomic awareness is no longer optional for board directors. They explore the structural challenges facing UK PLC, from the rationing of energy, capital and land to a labour market squeezed by rising on-costs and the early disruption of AI, and why boards need to reframe risk as an enabler of growth rather than something to be feared.With UK 30-year gilt yields recently hitting 5.787%, their highest level since 1998, and political uncertainty mounting ahead of the May elections, Simon explains why patient capital and strategic boldness could unlock a significant revaluation opportunity for UK assets. From the legacy of Brexit and the defence spending pivot to the competing forces of AI-driven disinflation and geopolitical fragmentation, this conversation offers a clear-eyed roadmap for NEDs navigating an increasingly complex operating environment.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (02:31) - A Career Spanning the Public and Private Sector (04:27) - Why Boards Need Macro Thinking in a Polycrisis World (06:27) - Capital Markets, Shareholder Engagement and Rationing (09:00) - Corporate Governance in a Post-Ukraine Economy (10:47) - The Black Knight Economy: Resilience amid Structural Constraint (15:51) - Brexit, EU Alignment and the Defence Opportunity (19:34) - The Rationing of Inputs: Energy, Land and Capital (22:23) - UK Investibility and the Patient Capital Opportunity (30:19) - Permacrisis, Inflation and Interest Rate Risk (33:12) - AI, Labour Costs and the Flexibility Imperative (41:54) - The Case for Strategic BoldnessSimon French: Simon French is Managing Director, Chief Economist and Head of Research at Panmure Liberum, one of the UK's leading independent investment banks and the largest adviser to UK-quoted companies. He produces market-leading and II/Extel top-ranked economic analysis and is a member of the firm's Senior Leadership Team. Before joining Panmure Gordon in 2014, Simon spent twelve years as an economic adviser in the UK Civil Service, serving at the Department for Work and Pensions, the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury. He holds undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Economics and Finance from Durham University and is a member of the Government Economic Service and the Society of Professional Economists. Simon has a fortnightly column in The Times and is a regular contributor to BBC TV and Radio, CNBC, Bloomberg and Sky News, making him one of the most widely recognised economic commentators in the UK.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Questions This Episode Answers:Should boards really pay attention to the macro environment, or just focus on their own P&L?Simon argues that even operationally excellent businesses keep being sideswiped by a series of poly-crises, from the financial crisis and Brexit to the pandemic, war and resurgent inflation. Macroeconomics need not dominate strategy, but boards that relegate the big picture face a steady succession of avoidable shocks.Why are UK gilt yields and borrowing costs rising?Simon points to two overlapping forces. Inflation risk from the Ukraine and Middle East conflicts is lifting the term premium, while political risk ahead of the May elections, and speculation about a leadership challenge, is being priced into gilts. For companies funded off the risk-free rate, that volatility matters.Is the weak labour market caused by AI or by rising employment costs?Simon sits firmly in the on-cost camp. He attributes the current softening mainly to layered employer national insurance, the national living wage, the employment rights bill and auto-enrolment, which have raised the cost of employing people far faster than productivity. AI's larger impact, he argues, comes later.Does the UK remain investible for global capital?Yes, but only for patient capital, Simon says. UK assets are keenly priced at valuation discounts, creating a genuine revaluation opportunity if a supportive political and macro backdrop emerges. Investors may have to...
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    51 mins
  • Leading Through Permacrisis: Will Geddes on Boardroom Decision-Making Under Pressure

    Leading Through Permacrisis: Will Geddes on Boardroom Decision-Making Under Pressure
    Apr 29 2026
    How should boards lead when the world refuses to stand still? In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Will Geddes, Managing Director of ICP Group and one of the UK's leading authorities on security, crisis management and geopolitical risk. They explore why boards now operate inside a state of permacrisis, why traditional crisis manuals rarely leave the shelf, and how directors should make decisions with imperfect, contested and fast-moving information.With markets now openly pricing in permacrisis as the operating environment and EY analysis showing that around 60 percent of FTSE 100 returns now hinge on geopolitical and macro forces, Will's perspective on judgement, instinct and audit trails has rarely been more timely. From a real-world story of advising a director caught in the 2008 Mumbai attacks to practical guidance on rehearsing crisis response across Zoom, Teams and the boardroom, this conversation offers NEDs and aspiring directors a clear-eyed playbook for leading when getting the call wrong is the biggest risk of all.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (04:04) - An Unconventional Path Into Specialist Security (06:06) - Defining Permacrisis for the Boardroom (08:03) - The Domino Effect of a Far-Flung Incident (11:11) - Breaking Silos and Communicating Across the Board (13:25) - Are Board Meetings Still Fit for Purpose? (15:48) - Building Horizon-Scanning Into the Agenda (18:54) - Decision-Making With Imperfect Information (23:07) - When Instinct Beats Data and Analysis (27:48) - Reputational Management (35:23) - The Next Three Things Every Board Should DoWill Geddes: Will Geddes is the Managing Director and founder of ICP Group (International Corporate Protection), a globally recognised, niche threat-management security firm originally established in 1996 that supports clients ranging from FTSE and Fortune 100 corporations to family offices and high-profile private individuals. With more than 30 years' experience in specialist security, his work spans close protection, crisis management, kidnap and ransom, counter-terrorism, intelligence gathering, multi-jurisdictional investigations, cyber and geopolitical risk. He also founded TacticsON and is a regular international media commentator on security, terrorism and risk for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, ITN, CNN, The Telegraph and BBC Radio 4 Today. His perspective combines decades of frontline operational experience with strategic advisory work for boards making consequential decisions under pressure.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Episode Insights:Permacrisis means treating crisis as a continuum rather than a contingency, with seemingly minor or far-flung events capable of triggering a domino effect across global operations and reputation.Crisis manuals rarely come off the shelf when something actually happens, so what matters is whether the board has practised problem-solving and communication together using the tools they truly rely on.Decisions made with imperfect information are unavoidable, which is why a clean audit trail of what was known, by whom and when, is the single best protection for directors and the company.A board that defers decisions, fills silence with content for its own sake or refuses to admit failings damages stakeholder trust more than the underlying crisis often does.Strong crisis leadership combines humility, judgement and emotional intelligence; AI can support scenario planning at the macro level but the human element remains essential at the micro.Action Points:Treat crisis as a continuum, not an event: Build standing horizon-scanning into every board agenda alongside performance reporting. Ask each function where they foresee issues and how a single incident in one country could ripple across the business. This forces the board to spot domino effects early and to allocate attention to the right risks rather than the loudest ones.Rehearse together, across channels: Schedule regular cross-functional simulations using the tools you actually rely on day to day, including Zoom, Teams and phone. Test how the board problem-solves laterally rather than how individuals handle a dramatic hostage scenario. Doing this routinely surfaces communication gaps and trains people to lean on each other ...
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    41 mins
  • Thinking the Unthinkable: Why Boards Must Govern for a World Without Stability

    Thinking the Unthinkable: Why Boards Must Govern for a World Without Stability
    Apr 15 2026
    What happens when the world your board was built to govern no longer exists?In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Nik Gowing, founder of Think Unthink, former BBC World News presenter and co-author of Thinking the Unthinkable, about why boards are structurally unprepared for the scale and speed of disruption now unfolding. From the fall of the Berlin Wall to the 2026 Iran conflict, Nik draws on decades of frontline reporting and direct engagement with leaders to argue that zombie orthodoxes are blinding boards to existential threats.With the World Economic Forum's Global Risks Report 2026 ranking geoeconomic confrontation as the number one global risk and UK unemployment reaching a post-pandemic high of 5.2% amid accelerating AI-driven job losses, the conversation could not be more timely. Nik introduces the Pinball Principle — the idea that crises now cascade at speeds no board can control — and calls for heretical thinking, new mind muscle and a fundamental rethink of how often and how deeply boards engage with the realities confronting them.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (04:08) - Nik Gowing: From the Berlin Wall to the Boardroom (05:59) - Are Boards Fundamentally Misreading the World? (10:51) - AI, Mass Unemployment and a Coming Societal Implosion (15:09) - The Pinball Principle: No Predictability, No Control (18:38) - Are Boards Designed to Avoid Uncomfortable Truths? (21:24) - Why Boards Are Getting Blindsided on Risk (25:58) - Cyber Attacks, War Gaming and Saturday Morning Crises (28:47) - Heretics in the Boardroom and Tearing Up the Rule Book (33:56) - The Adversity We Are Not Prepared For (37:00) - What Every Chair Should Ask at Their Next Meeting (40:26) - Embracing Uncertainty: The Positive Way ForwardNik Gowing: Nik Gowing is the founder and director of Think Unthinkable and co-author of Thinking the Unthinkable: A New Imperative for Leadership in the Digital Age. A former main news presenter for BBC World News (1996–2014), he spent 18 years at ITN as bureau chief in Rome and Warsaw and as Diplomatic Editor for Channel Four News, collecting a BAFTA for his coverage of martial law in Poland. Nik has reported from the front lines of major global crises including the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the Soviet Union, the conflicts in former Yugoslavia and the events of 9/11. He is a Distinguished Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, a Visiting Professor at King's College London and a former member of the World Economic Forum's Global Agenda Council on Geo-Economics. He has advised the President of the UN General Assembly on leadership challenges and holds honorary doctorates from Exeter and Bristol universities. Most recently, he moderated high-level plenary sessions at the 2026 Villars Ocean Forum on planetary tipping points.Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Episode Insights:Boards are constrained by zombie orthodoxes — inherited assumptions about stability and predictability that no longer reflect reality — and what qualified leaders for their roles may now disqualify them from understanding the scale of disruption ahead.The Pinball Principle captures how crises now cascade in unpredictable directions at speeds that outpace traditional governance structures, leaving boards feeling powerless but unable to admit it.Risk and resilience registers are being artificially constrained, with some chief risk officers told to cap the number of risks they report, leaving existential threats outside the boundary fence.Boards need heretics — people sanctioned to challenge consensus and think beyond established orthodoxies — valued as visionaries rather than treated as problems to be disposed of.AI-driven disruption threatens a societal implosion, with mass unemployment, mortgage crises and a fundamental breakdown in the social contract happening not in decades but in months.Action Points:Build new mind muscle at board level: Challenge every board member to identify at least three assumptions they hold about the business environment that may no longer be valid. Create structured exercises that force directors to confront scenarios they instinctively resist, building the cognitive flexibility Gowing calls new mind muscle.Tear up the quarterly ...
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    43 mins
  • Stewardship, Governance and Long-Term Value Creation with Kimberley Lewis

    Stewardship, Governance and Long-Term Value Creation with Kimberley Lewis
    Apr 1 2026
    What do investors actually look for when they sit down with a board? And has stewardship lost its way in a sea of tick boxes and league tables?In this episode of The Boardroom Path, host Ralph Grayson speaks with Kimberley Lewis, Head of Active Ownership at Schroders, one of the world's largest global asset managers. Kimberley leads Schroders' global stewardship strategy and works directly with chairs, CEOs and NEDs on governance, climate, human capital and geopolitics.They explore why quality stewardship should feel like a partnership rather than a compliance exercise and why boards need more courage to explain rather than simply comply. The conversation covers the growing wave of shareholder activism in Europe, with a 44% year-on-year surge in UK companies targeted by activists in 2025, the impact of the US ESG backlash on UK engagement, and why Kimberley believes companies that double down on their principles will ultimately be vindicated.From board composition and NED stock ownership to the balance between curiosity and technical expertise, this is a practical guide to what good governance looks like from the investor's chair.(00:00) - Welcome to The Boardroom Path (03:30) - From Law to Active Ownership: Kimberley's Career Path (05:01) - What Good Stewardship Really Looks Like (08:31) - Navigating the US ESG Backlash from London (13:01) - The Rise of Shareholder Activism in Europe (15:29) - Influence without Authority: Credibility in the Boardroom (18:02) - Stewardship in 2026 and the Updated Blueprint (21:24) - How Boards Handle Risk across Competing Themes (24:33) - Should NEDs Own Stock? (28:15) - Diversity, Refreshment and the Red Herring Debate (32:51) - When Stewardship Becomes Confused with Compliance (34:40) - The Future Board: Skills, Curiosity and JudgementKimberley Lewis: Kimberley Lewis is the Head of Active Ownership at Schroders, one of the world's largest global asset managers. She leads the firm's global stewardship strategy, overseeing how Schroders engages with boards and executive teams across listed and private markets on issues including corporate governance, climate change, human rights, human capital and geopolitics. A former lawyer in the United States, Kimberley pivoted into corporate responsibility roles at AstraZeneca and Pfizer before moving into investment stewardship, initially covering North American companies at a boutique ESG-integrated firm. She holds an MBA from London Business School and is a member of the International Corporate Governance Network. Ralph Grayson: Ralph Grayson is a Partner in the Board Practice at Sainty Hird & Partners, bringing extensive experience in board-level recruitment, assessment, and advisory services. With a deep understanding of the corporate governance landscape, Ralph specialises in guiding senior executives as they transition into impactful boardroom careers. His thoughtful approach, combined with a passion for developing effective leaders, enables him to facilitate insightful conversations that equip aspiring and newly appointed Non-Executive Directors with the tools they need to succeed. Through The Boardroom Path, Ralph leverages his extensive professional network and expertise to empower listeners on their journey into the boardroom.Resources & Links:Schroders 2026 Engagement BlueprintThe State of Stewardship Tulchan ReportIA Stewardship Working Group ReportUK Stewardship Code 2026Episode Insights:Quality stewardship is a collaborative, research-driven partnership between investors and boards, not a tick-box compliance exercise driven by league tables or voting records.The US ESG backlash is making stewardship harder but more important: companies are responding in very different ways, and those that double down on their principles are likely to be vindicated in the long run.Shareholder activism is surging in Europe and the UK, and boards should treat large, long-term shareholders as trusted partners and engage with activist concerns early rather than waiting for a crisis.The UK corporate governance framework needs more courage in the "explain" of "comply or explain": private conversations reveal boards often know what they should do but fear the headlines.Assessing true board quality remains one of the biggest unsolved challenges in stewardship: composition metrics and skills matrices are imperfect proxies for the judgement, curiosity and culture that really matter.Action Points:Treat your largest shareholders as strategic partners: Proactively reach out to your long-term institutional investors for candid conversations about governance, strategy and risk. These investors often have a broader market perspective and a genuine shared interest in long-term value creation. Use them as a sounding board before challenges escalate into activist campaigns.Embrace the "explain" in comply or explain: Resist the temptation to default to compliance for an easy life. If a departure from the corporate governance code serves the company's ...
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    39 mins