BOARD EVALUATION SERVICES NIGERIA

Board evaluation is very relevant if an organization wants a strong and effective governance. Both for profit and non-profit organizations will need to evaluate their work from time to time in order to accountable and transparent to their stakeholders.  Board evaluation is a key part of a board governance structure and it is totally different from evaluating programs.

In order to evaluate a board effectively and efficiently, a board will need to ensure that there are benchmarks in place.  Some of these benchmarks include the following:

  • Having clear board job descriptions
  • Hiring competent senior staff
  • Having a strategic plan
  • Having a strong chairperson
  • Holding effective board meetings
  • Adopting a governance structure that fits with the culture of the organization

HOW IS BOARD EVALUATION CARRIED OUT?

Board evaluation is carried out internally or externally in an organization.

  • Internal Board Evaluation

Internal board evaluation is managed by the board chair or a relevant committee of the board, and this can incorporate the use of survey tools. Internal board evaluation usually includes one on one meetings between the chair and each individual director in an organization.

The benefit of an internally managed evaluation/internal board evaluation is that:

  1. It is less expensive because it doesn’t require hiring the services of a consultant
  2. It is less confronting for the directors
  3. It has a lighter touch and the structure is not rigid

Some of the disadvantages of the internally managed evaluation includes the following:

  1. Reluctance of directors to share issues within the company
  2. The approach may not be entirely acceptable to stakeholders, as they may question the rigour of the process implemented
  • The Externally facilitated board evaluation

This has to do with using an external consultant like Qeeva Advisory to manage the board evaluation process. It is more costly to engage an external consultant than implementing an internally managed process.

The benefit of an externally board evaluation process is that

  1. There is a greater objectivity
  2. It encourages complete candour by directors and management
  3. There is a level of benchmarking or comparison
  4. A more detailed report will be provided
  5. Experience and exposure of the consultant to other boards

It is common for boards of organizations to implement an externally facilitated board evaluation process every 2 to 4 years and to conduct a lighter touch internally managed process in each of the years between

WHY DO YOU NEED A BOARD EVALUATION IN YOUR ORGANIZATION

Board evaluation of an organization is affiliated with planning and is directly related to achieving the outcomes and results that are specified in the board’s strategic plan. It is not recommended for you to wait until your board is in crisis before you carry out an evaluation. The immediate objective for carrying out a board evaluation is continuous governance improvement and this can be achieved by identifying board performance improvement opportunities and governance framework

An evaluation will show warning signs and further enlightenment on whether your board is going off track. Whenever board evaluation is carried out, the organization becomes a high performance organization and is more likely to have the following traits:

  • Competent board and staff leadership
  • Developing team work
  • Better decision making,
  • Improving the effectiveness of meetings, gaining greater
  • Clarity of roles
  • Board engagement in strategic planning
  • A customer and results focus
  • Positive relationships with key stakeholders
  • Good financial stewardship
  • Effective and efficient use of resources
  • Clear lines of accountability
  • Good meeting management
  • An organizational culture that encourages good teamwork, respect for organizational norms, values staff, and encourages excellence
  • Low levels of internal conflict
  • Perceived legitimacy and credibility
  • Providing accountability to individual board members, staff, clients, its membership and the broader community it serves

Board evaluation is a key part of measuring the effectiveness, efficiency and client satisfaction of an organization

WHO WE ARE?

Qeeva Advisory is a member of the Matog Consulting group with over 18 years in board evaluation processes in various organizations.  We serve as an external consultants to organizations when implanting board evaluation procedures. We will work side by side with your board, providing concise knowledge and ensuring that we deliver a lasting work. You should hire us for your board evaluation implementation process because:

  • We develop suitable strategies at appropriate time and its effectiveness
  • We implement of robust policies and procedures, size, structure and expertise of the Board; oversight of the financial reporting process and internal control
  • Willingness to spend time and effort to learn about the company and its business
  • Awareness about the latest developments in the areas such as corporate governance framework, financial reporting, industry and market conditions
  • Years of experience and expertise are at our disposal

OUR BOARD EVALUATION PROCESS

The board evaluation process we are implementing at Qeeva Advisory will look into what the board has achieved and how it has achieved it.  While evaluating the board of an organization, they are to carry out the following responsibilities during our board evaluation process. These board responsibilities include the following:

  • Board management (meetings, roles of individual directors, committees, etc.)
  • Board development (recruitment and orientation process, governance structure)
  • Board goals, mission and strategic plan
  • Senior staff (i.e., Executive Director)

While carry out the board evaluation process we implement the following

  1. Decide on the purpose of the evaluation

This is carried out by us to know if the current structure that is present in your organization is still an effective way to govern

  1. Set up an evaluation structure

We will work with the board in ensuring that an effective evaluation structure is in place. A self-evaluation process will be implemented

  1. Prepare the evaluation design

Qeeva Advisory will access tools that will aid us in evaluating the effectiveness and the efficiency related to the board decision making process, the current level of board involvement of daily organizational operations and the relationship of authority that exists between the board and the staffs of the organization

  1. Gather information

Information will be gathered on the organization using a questionnaire for individual board members and the senior staff. The questionnaire will be used to anonymously collect information and a focus group will be facilitated with the board as a whole

  1. Analyse information

After we have gathered all the information, we will summarize it and present it to the board as full detailed report

  1. Action and implementation

The action and implementation plan will be based on the results that is submitted to the organization. It will up to the company to decide if it will want to maintain its current governance structure or to investigate another model that will fit into the culture of the organization based on the information collected, data analysed and report collated.

The board improvement action plan, like all performance appraisal approaches, should include specific and measurable KPIs and the chair of the board, or a relevant committee of the board, perhaps with support from the company secretary, should be responsible to oversee its implementation over the ensuing year.

Underperforming directors that are identified through the board evaluation process should be carefully counselled by the chair or in cases where there are issues of concern about the chair’s performance, by one of the appropriate directors

BOARD EVALUATION METHODS/TOOLS

At Qeeva Advisory we are going to implement two methods for the externally facilitated evaluation method. The method to be implemented sometimes depends on the size and maturity of the organization as well as the issues that the board is facing. These methods include:

  • Interview based methods:

Interview based methods are qualitative in nature and they are good for delving into the complex board or management dynamic and often sensitive interpersonal relationships with in-depth. The interview based method will consist of a one on one basis and a pair interview that will allow us assess how the board members understand each other

  • Survey based methods:

The survey based methods are usually quantitative in nature and this approach aids in focusing the minds of the participants in the evaluation process and it also provides benchmarking of results overtime. The survey method will mostly deal with the directors of the organization in order to ascertain the performance of the board on a numbered scale in relation to various matters

A combination of the two process will allow us carry an effective board evaluation process. There must be input from executives, board members and other relevant management team members.

BOARD EVALUATION QUESTIONS

When conducting the board evaluation, there some set of questions that will asked during a one on one interview with board members (personal interview), pair assessment interview, focus groups, surveys, and the questionnaires.

We will conduct self-assessment interviews and the self-assessment can include the following items:

  • The percentage of meetings attended over the year (or term)
  • The satisfaction level of meeting preparation
  • The satisfaction level of meeting participation
  • Personal strengths and weaknesses
  • The success level of meeting the criteria laid out in the board job description

Other related questions may include but not limited to:

  • How it operates within its mission, goals and bylaws
  • Board members’ understanding of their roles and responsibilities
  • Board job descriptions
  • The work of committees and their terms of reference
  • The composition and structure of the board
  • Risk management policies and safeguards
  • Recruitment and orientation practices
  • Evaluation procedures for senior staff and individual board members
  • Accomplishments and actions taken that relate to the organization’s strategic plan

INDUSTRY SERVED

  • Manufacturers
  • Service Providers
  • ICT
  • Mining
  • Oil & Gas
  • Government agencies
  • Health Care
  • Finance & Insurance
  • Real Estate
  • Professional & Technical Services
  • Utilities
  • Entertainment
  • Market
  • Construction
  • Power
  • Agriculture
  • Transport
  • Trade: Import & Exports

WHAT WILL BE EVALUATED IN A BOARD EVALUATION PROCESS

Board evaluation is carried out to ascertain the effectiveness and efficiency of the board and its component parts. It is these component parts of the board that will be evaluated and the potential parts for evaluation consists of the following:

  • The Board

The board as a whole will be assessed in order to know how well it is functioning, its relationship with the management and staffs, the ability to deliver its strategic plan and governance role

  • The Board’s committees

The board’s committee will also be assessed in order to know their structure and how well they respectively function to support the board in its role.

  • Individual directors

This category will also be assessed in order to ascertain how well the directors perceive themselves and how they are all contributing together positively and effectively to the work of the board. This will also include how well their contributions to the board can be improved

  • The chair of the board and the chair of the committees

This will assess specifically how well the chair of the various groups carry out their functions and roles

Experienced and highly effective Board members have learned that it’s critical to regularly conduct short, practical evaluations of the quality of their Board operations and then to attend to the results of those evaluations during the year. Many times, Board members do not know what they do not know about their own Board. Take for example, the board may be terribly ineffective and they have fallen into a rut in their operations without knowing.

Qeeva Advisory will ensure that it makes available the best and effective board evaluation implementation for your organization. For more information, you can contact us on 08023200801, 08075765799, Email: info@qeeva.com