XC7 The Executive Director exercises accountability and engages effectively with key stakeholders (CfA 521)
Unit Summary
The Executive Director will bring personal experience, internal knowledge and relevant expertise to the decision making process to assist the Governing Body when it exercises accountability to and takes proper account of the interests of key stakeholders
Personal attributes
The Executive Director will apply the following personal attributes:
- Analysing critically
- Making sound judgements
- Showing imagination
- Taking a strategic perspective
- Managing resources
- Communicating engagingly
- Being self-aware
- Being emotionally resilient
- Applying intuition
- Being sensitive to others
- Influencing others
- Being motivated
- Acting conscientiously
Performance indicators
Identify the organisation’s stakeholders and evaluate their interests and impact on the organisation
The Executive Director will bring personal experience, internal knowledge and relevant expertise to the decision making process to assist the Governing Body to:
1.Establish systems to identify the organisation’s internal and external stakeholders
2.Evaluate the impact on the organisation of the various stakeholders
3.Evaluate appropriate information about the interests of key stakeholders
Knowledge and understanding
The Executive Director will know:
General knowledge and understanding
- Appropriate database systems for the organisation’s internal and external stakeholders
- The legal requirements on the collection and use of information
- Evaluation methods
- ICSA Guidance Notes 2003 Matters reserved for the Board
Sources of context specific knowledge and understanding
For Boards of Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
- The Combined Code (2003);
D1 Dialogue with Institutional Shareholders
D2 Constructive use of the AGM - ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Recommended best practice on electronic communication with shareholders
For Boards of Private Sector Companies
- The Institute of Directors’ Standards for the Board (2001); Part 3 Section D Exercise accountability to shareholders and be responsible to relevant stakeholders
- OECD Principles of Corporate Governance (2004);
2 The rights of shareholders and key ownership functions
3. The equitable treatment of shareholders
4 The role of stakeholders in corporate governance
For Governing Bodies within the Public Sector
- The Independent Commission on Good Governance in Public Services’ The Good Governance Standard for Public Services (2004); 6 Good governance means engaging stakeholders and making accountability real
- The OECD Guidelines for State Owned Enterprises (2005);
2 The state acting as an owner
3 Equitable treatment of shareholders
4 Relations with stakeholders
For Governing Bodies within the Voluntary and Community Sector
- National Occupational Standards for Trustees and Management Committee Members (2006) Unit 1
- Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector (2005) Principle H
For Governing Bodies of registered charities
- Operational Guidance by the Charity Commission
- CC3 - The Essential Trustee: What you need to know (June 2005)
- Charity Commission Governance Framework (2005)
Performance indicators
Take into account the interests of key stakeholders
The Executive Director will bring personal experience, internal knowledge and relevant expertise to the decision making process to assist the Governing Body to:
4.Agree a policy to manage relationships with key stakeholders
5.Make arrangements to promote the goodwill and support of key stakeholders
6.Ensure systems respond effectively to stakeholder issues and to identify and resolve conflicts of interest and disagreements
Knowledge and understanding
The Executive Director will know:
General knowledge and understanding
- Relationship management systems
- Effective techniques to promote the goodwill and support of key stakeholders
- Methods of identifying and responding to stakeholder issues and resolving conflicts
- ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Matters reserved for the Board
Sources of context specific knowledge and understanding
For Boards of Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
- The Combined Code (2003);
D1 Dialogue with Institutional Shareholders
D2 Constructive use of the AGM - ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Recommended best practice on electronic communication with shareholders
For Boards of Private Sector Companies
- The Institute of Directors’ Standards for the Board (2001); Part 3 Section D Exercise accountability to shareholders and be responsible to relevant stakeholders
- OECD Principles of Corporate Governance (2004);
2 The rights of shareholders and key ownership functions
3. The equitable treatment of shareholders
4 The role of stakeholders in corporate governance
For Governing Bodies within the Public Sector
- The Independent Commission on Good Governance in Public Services’ The Good Governance Standard for Public Services (2004); 6 Good governance means engaging stakeholders and making accountability real
- The OECD Guidelines for State Owned Enterprises (2005)
2 The state acting as an owner
3 Equitable treatment of shareholders
4 Relations with stakeholders
For Governing Bodies within the Voluntary and Community Sector
- National Occupational Standards for Trustees and Management Committee Members (2006) Unit 1
- Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector (2005) Principle H
For Governing Bodies of registered charities
- Operational Guidance by the Charity Commission
Performance indicators
Demonstrate the Governing Body’s accountability to key stakeholders
The Executive Director will bring personal experience, internal knowledge and relevant expertise to the decision making process to assist the Governing Body to:
7.Establish a policy of accessibility and openness with key stakeholders
8.Ensure effective channels of communication are set up both to and from key stakeholders
9.Provide a balanced and accurate assessment of the organisation’s successes and failures, together with a balanced and comprehensible assessment of the organisation’s position and prospects
10.Encourage and enable the engagement of key stakeholders in the organisation’s planning and decision-making
11.Ensure that communications from the organisation are relevant, consistent, unbiased, accurate, and cost-effective
Knowledge and understanding
The Executive Director will know:
General knowledge and understanding
- The importance in governance rating of openness for all organisation dealings with key stakeholders
- Effective channels of communication
- The importance in governance rating of balanced and accurate disclosure
- The importance in governance rating of positive relations and engagement with key non-financial stakeholders
- The necessity that all communications from the organisation are relevant, consistent, unbiased, accurate, and cost-effective
- ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Matters reserved for the Board
Sources of context specific knowledge and understanding
For Boards of Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
- The Combined Code (2003);
D1 Dialogue with Institutional Shareholders
D2 Constructive use of the AGM - ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Recommended best practice on electronic communication with shareholders
For Boards of Private Sector Companies
- The Institute of Directors’ Standards for the Board (2001); Part 3 Section D Exercise accountability to shareholders and be responsible to relevant stakeholders
- OECD Principles of Corporate Governance (2004);
2 The rights of shareholders and key ownership functions
3. The equitable treatment of shareholders
4 The role of stakeholders in corporate governance
For Governing Bodies within the Public Sector
- The Independent Commission on Good Governance in Public Services’ The Good Governance Standard for Public Services (2004); 6 Good governance means engaging stakeholders and making accountability real
- The OECD Guidelines for State Owned Enterprises (2005);
2 The state acting as an owner
3 Equitable treatment of shareholders
4 Relations with stakeholders
For Governing Bodies within the Voluntary and Community Sector
- National Occupational Standards for Trustees and Management Committee Members (2006) Unit 1
- Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector (2005) Principle H
For Governing Bodies of registered charities
- Operational Guidance by the Charity Commission
Performance indicators
Monitor relations with key stakeholders
The Executive Director will bring personal experience, internal knowledge and relevant expertise to the decision making process to assist the Governing Body to:
12.Monitor and review regularly relations with key stakeholders
13.Ensure that robust procedures are embedded into the systems to manage communications at times of crisis as well as on a routine basis
14.Ensure information systems are in existence that are capable of alerting the Governing Body to the possible risks and costs of mismanaged relations
Knowledge and understanding
The Executive Director will know:
General knowledge and understanding
- Monitoring and evaluation systems
- Critical issues management
- Public relations management
- ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Matters reserved for the Governing body
Sources of context specific knowledge and understanding
For Boards of Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
- The Combined Code (2003);
D1 Dialogue with Institutional Shareholders
D2 Constructive use of the AGM - ICSA Guidance Notes 2003; Recommended best practice on electronic communication with shareholders
For Boards of Private Sector Companies
- The Institute of Directors’ Standards for the Board (2001); Part 3 Section D Exercise accountability to shareholders and be responsible to relevant stakeholders
- OECD Principles of Corporate Governance (2004);
2 The rights of shareholders and key ownership functions
3. The equitable treatment of shareholders
4 The role of stakeholders in corporate governance
For Governing Bodies within the Public Sector
- The Independent Commission on Good Governance in Public Services’ The Good Governance Standard for Public Services (2004); 6 Good governance means engaging stakeholders and making accountability real
- The OECD Guidelines for State Owned Enterprises (2005);
2 The state acting as an owner
3 Equitable treatment of shareholders
4 Relations with stakeholders
For Governing Bodies within the Voluntary and Community Sector
- National Occupational Standards for Trustees and Management Committee Members (2006) Unit 1
- Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector (2005) Principle H
For Governing Bodies of registered charities
- Operational Guidance by the Charity Commission
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National Occupational Standards for the Governance of Public Sector Services / Final version August 2007