Stepping Outside the Echo Chamber

Corporate partners Doug Raymond and Amelia Brett co-authored an article for Directors & Boards titled, “Stepping Outside the Echo Chamber.” The article argues that the most effective boardrooms are those that have assembled a diverse group of directors who approach issues from different perspectives and are willing to challenge management and each other constructively as well as broaden the collective field of vision.

The authors point out that a board composed only of directors who have walked similar paths may be inherently limited. For example, while a board comprised entirely of former CEOs may bring deep leadership experience, it may lack insight into how decisions resonate across other dimensions of the business and its stakeholders. By ensuring decisions are evaluated from multiple angles, diversity on the board can guard against groupthink or the failure to challenge assumptions, conditions that frequently are present in governance failures.

The full article is available to Directors & Boards subscribers.