Board development

The Board Journey

The board sees how it works. Each director sees their contribution.

The reports have been reviewed and decisions made. But did the future receive enough attention – and did every perspective get heard?

For chairs and boards seeking to make better use of each director’s expertise and strengthen the company’s long-term value.

Your everyday reality

Does this sound familiar?

  • Reporting fills the agenda. The future of the business, strategic assumptions and major investments receive too little time.
  • Owner expectations, board responsibilities and the CEO’s role blur when difficult issues need resolving.
  • Papers arrive late or lack clear alternatives. Important objections surface only after the decision.
More situations you may recognise
  • Financial and risk reports are available, but cash flow warnings or control weaknesses emerge too late.
  • Directors bring extensive experience, yet it is unclear which perspectives and active contributions the next phase requires.
  • Expectations of the CEO are too vague to assess progress. Discussions about a future successor keep being postponed.
  • Decisions are recorded, but their effects are rarely reviewed. The board’s own ways of working are not evaluated either.

Turn individual expertise into a stronger board.

The board needs to weigh owner expectations against the company’s best interests, examine strategic alternatives and monitor finances and risk. It must support and challenge the CEO without becoming a parallel management team.

The Board Journey connects this shared purpose with each director’s specialist expertise and behaviour. What do I contribute? What do I need to practise? What support do I need from you? We also consider the expertise the company needs over the next 12 to 36 months.

Illustration of four directors in an engaged discussion around the board table
Room for different perspectives. A shared responsibility. Illustrative image.

How we work

From the desired outcome to practical progress

  1. Build a shared picture

    We clarify what the board needs to achieve. Directors’ gap assessments provide a shared, anonymised picture of strengths, differences and development needs.

  2. Choose a focus and understand the causes

    We select at most two improvements. Assessments are checked against board papers, finances and risk reporting, trends and relevant goals. We then explore the underlying causes.

  3. Define your contribution

    Each director clarifies their specialist contribution and chooses behaviours to practise through an individual action plan. Deeper behavioural insight and individual coaching, when included, are linked to real board matters.

  4. Practise and support one another

    Individual action plans connect with the board’s shared plan. Each director chooses what to share and can ask colleagues for specific support. Practice takes place through the board’s ongoing work.

  5. Review after 30 and 90 days

    What has changed in behaviour, working relationships and decisions? We review the effects on the board’s work and adjust both the practice and the support directors give one another.

Different assessments may reflect different access to information or experience. We explore those differences to understand how the board can develop together.

Potential effects

Progress you can see in practice

These are potential improvements. Together, we track the effects that matter in your situation.

  • More time for strategic choices.
  • Better evidence and more independent perspectives before decisions.
  • Clearer working relationships between chair, board and CEO.
  • Earlier action on financial signals and risks.
  • Better use of each director’s expertise and more practical support between colleagues.

What is included

Programme and investment

  • Board gap assessment and shared, anonymised feedback
  • Help choosing at most two improvements, checking the evidence and understanding the causes
  • Shared and individual action plans with practice through current board matters
  • Follow-up of behaviour, working relationships and effects after 30 and 90 days

The number of sessions, individual development and fee depend on the board’s needs. Individual coaching and Nova Deep Insight are optional elements, specified in the proposal after the first conversation.

Common questions

Is this a board evaluation or a development journey?

Evaluation is the starting point. The shared picture becomes a set of prioritised improvements and an action plan for each director. Practice, voluntary sharing and peer support help change how the board works. After 30 and 90 days, we review what has actually changed.

Are Nova Deep Insight and individual coaching included?

They can be included where relevant and are specified in the agreed programme. Nova Deep Insight provides a basis for exploring individual behaviour in board work. Coaching helps each director choose what to practise. Directors decide for themselves what to share with the board.

Next step

Where does your board’s work need to make a greater difference?

We begin with your purpose, what the board needs to develop and how each director can contribute.