The Board Management Maturity Model

How a board functions in the way it organizes meetings, looks at issues, prepares reports and handles data – changes over time. Boards are generally not aware of this, but an effective maturity model can aid them in understanding and tracking their growth.

While an annual report provides an objective approach in assessing governance practices, a board management maturity assessment gives a deeper and more thorough analysis. These assessments provide boards with a plan that will help them reach the next level of governance maturity.

The majority of boards start at the lowest level of maturity in management. They are boards that are willingly and observant, who recognize their obligations and public exposure but view governance as an imposition on their “proper” duties of managing the business. The first step is moving board members away from a view of governance as an administrative burden, and towards developing an internal competency in strategic thinking.

Maturity models usually comprise of three to five levels which examine the quality of governance strategies within a company. They assess areas like the supervision of risk, board management and stakeholder engagement. The initial stage is typically established by impromptu methods without formal standards or alignment, while the third and second levels have more definite methodologies. These may include benchmarking, interviews or questionnaires. Interviews can reveal the team’s commitment and enthusiasm towards specific procedures while surveys conducted by an independent third party are more methodical www.healthyboardroom.com/is-your-team-ready-to-handle-a-board-crisis/ and provide an accurate and balanced view of a board’s current level of maturity.