Corporate strategy is a difficult undertaking for directors, even in the best of times. While management draws on significant resources to develop and refine corporate strategy, directors have fewer opportunities to contribute to the endeavor. It is not surprising then that while CEOs suggest that participating in corporate strategy is the second most important activity that their boards undertake, they give their boards only the 11th highest grade for their performance in this realm. “What’s the board’s role in strategy development?: Engaging the board in corporate strategy”, David A. Nadler, Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 32 No. 5, 2004. The difficulty of developing corporate strategy, as well as the stakes involved, increase significantly in times of economic crisis such as we are facing today.

Against this background and facing the current economic crisis, the Lead Director Network, a group of lead directors, presiding directors and non-executive chairmen from many of America’s leading companies created by King & Spalding and Tapestry Networks, met on November 3, 2008 to discuss the role of the board in corporate strategy. Following this meeting, King & Spalding and Tapestry Networks have published the ViewPoints report, to present highlights of the discussion that occurred at the meeting and to stimulate further consideration of this important subject. The following provides highlights from the meeting, as described in this ViewPoints report.

Greater Involvement of Boards in Corporate Strategy. Members of the Lead Director Network observed that boards have become significantly more involved in corporate strategy in recent years. This increased involvement might be attributable to boards being more proactive, generally, since the corporate scandals in the early part of this decade, the rise of activist investors, and directors’ own efforts to become more engaged in corporate strategy, particularly when their companies are undergoing rapid changes or facing turbulent events.

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