NACD Three Rivers hosts Director of the Year Awards, Tickets for Kids anniversary and Rosedale Tech events (Around Town)
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From left to right: Bill Flanagan, Bill Pietragallo, Hoddy Hanna III, Zach Brecheisen & Diana Defino. Hoddy Hanna was the 2025 Leadership in Private Company Governance Award honoree.
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29-05-2025
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Why Are More CHRO's In Board Rooms Today? People, Risk, And More
Recent studies and board programs illustrate the increasing prominence and participation of chief ... More human resource officers (CHROs) on company boards of directors. Recent studies and board programs illustrate the increasing prominence and participation of chief human resource officers (CHROs) on company boards of directors. As intangible assets represent a larger portion of company valuations, board skill requirements expand in a changing world and people play a larger role in driving material levels of performance and risk, effective boards incorporate human capital measurement into governance processes and engage those with HR expertise to guide them. NACD's 2024 Inside the Public Company Boardroom report suggested a growing need for non-traditional skills on boards. These include technology, human capital, cybersecurity and digital skills. Leadership skills also are on the rise, according to the study. Another NACD piece suggested innovation skills are critical to board success over time. All these skills are highly people-focused and dependent. The closing session of a new Corporate Governance for Chief Human Resource Officers course offered by the UC Irvine Paul Merage School of Business Leadership Development Institute and the UCLA Anderson School of Business Human Resources Roundtable (HARRT) focused on global board trends for 2025 and beyond. The central theme was people governance in a constantly changing business environment. Topics included people and risk implications of geopolitical factors, AI, cyber, quantum computing and talent shortages. Matteo Tonello from The Conference Board recently posted an article in Corporate Governance Law at on how CHRO-board engagement is evolving at publicly traded companies in the U.S. and Europe. Nearly 70% of companies surveyed reported increased CHRO engagement with the board over the past three years. Additionally, the share of directors with human capital expertise at publicly traded companies in the U.S. is rising (38% of S&P 500 and 25.5% of Russell 3000 companies in 2024). Recent research from a collaboration between WTW and Directors and Boards explored the evolution of effective stewardship among boards. According to the study, the top five topics by business materiality that board members currently spend the most time discussing are: • Financial performance monitoring and reporting • Purpose and strategy development • Human capital and culture • Innovation and transformation • Enterprise risk management WTW's 2025 Global Directors and Officers Survey Report listed health and safety as the top risk for board members for the second year in a row, followed by data loss and cyber attacks. All three of these factors are directly connected to human capital governance (for example, there are strong links between employee wellbeing and data and cyber breaches). According to the Directors and Boards study, directors are observing a shift in the topics that boards consider material to the business and their fiduciary duties. While financial performance monitoring and reporting remain the top priority, board members also find it important to spend more time in three areas material to the business: leadership succession and development; purpose and strategy development; and innovation and transformation. This combination of material issues further requires directors to focus on human capital factors. Effective boards use a variety of dashboards and trackers to monitor organization performance against key people indices (e.g. productivity, engagement, skill gaps, wellbeing, safety, pay and benefits competitiveness). The Conference Board study reports that the CHRO's role is expanding to encompass greater responsibility for corporate governance as boards and senior management increasingly emphasize human capital strategies and as investors', regulators' and customers' expectations change. The study also suggests that boards and CEOs expect CHROs to act as enterprise leaders who align human capital strategy with financial, operational, and risk priorities and drive workforce strategy, succession planning, mergers and acquisitions, and business transformation in collaboration with the wider C-suite. According to the study, key expectations for CHROs interacting with boards include: • Business and financial strategy • Workforce and labor market strategy • Operational efficiency and leveraging analytics • CEO and leadership succession planning • Support for mergers and acquisitions and growth strategy The top workforce-related topics cited as gaining prominence in CHRO-board interactions in the next three years are: • Addressing generational shifts in the workplace (61%) • AI and automation impact on the workforce (49%) • Employee engagement and retention (33%) • Mental health and employee wellbeing (33%) • Reskilling and upskilling for future workforce needs (31%) According to the study, effective CHROs take several actions when interacting with boards: • Build professional credibility and trust with the board • Demonstrate business acumen and financial expertise • Foster informal and ongoing engagement with board members • Steer board discussions on human capital • Cultivate strategic alignment with the CEO before engaging the board Effective directors and CEOs take the following actions when addressing human capital governance topics: • Establish a direct board-CHRO relationship • Enhance the depth and quality of board discussions on human capital strategy • Support the CHRO in executive compensation and succession planning discussions • Champion the people strategy to the board • Build trust through open and honest dialogue • Empower the CHRO as a peer in the C-suite The Directors and Boards study also reports that effective directors and CEOs foster relationships with their CHROs outside the boardroom. This includes forging partnerships with other functional leaders such as legal, finance and risk as part of the CHRO's development plan so that together they build more business-oriented and multidisciplinary narratives about human capital risks and opportunities. They reduce board committee silos to find a common voice about human capital risks and opportunities across board committees. Effective boards understand the relevance and value of human capital governance, engaging CHROs and board members with human capital experience to implement effective governance practices. These boards integrate human capital governance into their practices, achieving sustainable growth and navigating the complexities of today's markets.
Business Journals
26-05-2025
- Business Journals
NACD Three Rivers hosts Director of the Year Awards, Tickets for Kids anniversary and Rosedale Tech events (Around Town)
Expand From left to right: Bill Flanagan, Bill Pietragallo, Hoddy Hanna III, Zach Brecheisen & Diana Defino. Hoddy Hanna was the 2025 Leadership in Private Company Governance Award honoree. NACD
Forbes
06-05-2025
- Forbes
Bravery Beats Brainpower: What Distinguishes The Strongest Teams
Waist-up view with focus on multiracial professional interacting with diverse project team in modern ... More conference room. getty From leadership teams to project groups, the number one thing that distinguishes exceptional teams from merely good ones isn't intelligence, experience, or information—it's courage. This "courage gap" separates those who excel from those who simply perform. Today, as teams face relentless pressures—tech disruption, economic volatility, changing stakeholder expectations, and a world that moves faster every day—the courage gap has never been more consequential. Having spent decades studying human behavior and advising teams at all levels, I see it play out the same way everywhere: the greatest risks are rarely invisible; they're just unspoken. While speaking at an event with the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD)recently, I shared insights on governance and decision-making with board directors. While boards operate at the highest organizational level, the principles I discussed apply universally to teams of all kinds. As I told the directors: Teams do not fail because no one knows the risks, but because no one was willing to name them out loud, early enough, or insist they be addressed. This dynamic plays out whether you're in a boardroom or a project team meeting. The data confirms this courage gap across all organizational levels. A PwC survey found that 46% of directors believe a fellow board member should be replaced—yet few ever say so. McKinsey research reveals that 85% of executives acknowledge their teams waste significant time avoiding conflicts rather than addressing them constructively. Meanwhile, Deloitte has identified "under-voicing" and groupthink as key risks undermining team performance. A recent EY Global Board Risk Survey found that 79% of organizations have experienced at least one significant risk event that could have been avoided with stronger internal challenge and debate. Even more concerning, McKinsey reports that 67% of teams make lower-quality decisions due to fear of conflict. These patterns echo through recent corporate crises. Before the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, concerns about financial oversight went unvoiced. At Boeing, warnings about safety concerns with the 737 MAX were suppressed until tragedy struck—costing 346 lives. At Wells Fargo, internal reports and whistleblower complaints flagged unethical practices, including the creation of millions of unauthorized accounts, but leadership failed to act. In each case, the courage gap had enormous costs—not just for companies, but for customers, employees, and society. Why do capable, intelligent team members fail to bridge this courage gap? It's rarely about ignorance or indifference. It's fear—of friction, fallout, or losing favor with those whose approval they seek. Too often, we let the comfort of consensus override the courage to dissent. Yet here's the paradox: The best teams don't avoid friction—they embrace productive friction as essential. Constructive conflict is key to refining thinking, testing assumptions, and surfacing blind spots. When teams avoid conflict in the name of harmony, they widen the courage gap and forfeit the intellectual rigor that leads to better decisions. Innovation dies in echo chambers. As Patrick Lencioni noted, the most effective teams aren't the ones with the least conflict—they're the ones that know how to channel it productively, trusting that disagreement is a means to improvement, not a threat to cohesion. Every poor team decision can be traced back to this courage gap: concerns that weren't voiced, conversations that weren't had, and conflict that wasn't constructively embraced. General George Patton once observed that "If everyone is thinking alike, somebody isn't thinking." I disagree. People were thinking. They were just afraid to express the thoughts that put them at risk of losing status or creating discord. So what separates the best teams from merely good ones? From my work with boards, executive teams, and organizations worldwide, I've identified five critical practices: Lead the conversation that isn't being had. The strongest teams ask: What's the conversation we most need to have, but aren't? If you have a concern or a question, chances are others do too. Taking the lead to ask the hard question and risk the friction is how exceptional teams distinguish themselves. Own your unique value and perspective. You're on the team for a reason. You bring a lens no one else does. And you don't need decades of experience for your voice to matter. When you hold back, you widen the courage gap and deprive others of that value. This isn't about puffing up or posturing—it's about owning the difference your difference makes. Make it safer for others to bridge the courage gap. Everyone shapes the culture. The best teams go out of their way to foster psychological safety and a 'culture of courage.' They invite challenge. Admit when they're wrong. Ask for feedback. Share when they change their mind. As Tanuja Dehne noted at the NACD meeting, consider holding a regular "culture retreat" to de-risk candor and build trust. You can't culture your way into new behaviors. You have to behave your way into a braver culture. Normalize intelligent risk-taking. Brave teams reward initiative, not just outcomes. They don't punish failure born from thoughtful risk—they learn from it. A Boston Consulting Group study found that organizations with a high-risk tolerance outperform their peers by 17% in innovation revenue. Google's famous Project Oxygen research revealed that psychological safety—including the freedom to take risks without fear of punishment—was the number one factor in high-performing teams. Accenture research shows that companies with a "fail fast, learn faster" culture are twice as likely to report revenue growth of 10% or more annually. Encourage team members to experiment, prototype ideas, and share what didn't work (and what they learned). Celebrate bold attempts, even when they fall short. Over time, this shifts the focus from playing it safe to playing for impact. Hold each other accountable for courage. Courage isn't just a personal virtue—it's a shared responsibility. High-performing teams create peer accountability not only around goals but around behaviors: speaking up, leaning in, calling things out. Harvard Business Review research indicates that teams with structured accountability for candor and constructive dissent are 76% more likely to make high-quality decisions. Gallup data shows that teams where members feel responsible for upholding team norms show 27% higher productivity. This could mean check-ins where team members share one risk they took that week, or holding space in meetings for those who haven't spoken to contribute. Courage grows when it's expected, not exceptional. Creating and scaling a 'courage mindset' unlocks the conversations, innovation, and learning needed to adapt faster, manage risk better, and drive stronger outcomes for all stakeholders. But don't wait for someone else to lead the way. The Courage Advantage Just as fear is contagious, so too is courage. When you choose courage over comfort, service over self-protection and decide to step up, speak up, and lead with conviction—guided by values, not emotions—you embolden others to cross the courage gap too. Deloitte research indicates that teams with leaders who actively encourage dissent and constructive challenge are 42% more likely to identify emerging risks early and 67% more likely to implement successful innovation initiatives. A Boston Consulting Group study found that diverse teams with high psychological safety generate 20% more revenue from innovation than their peers. As I wrote in The Courage Gap: You can't culture your way into new behaviors. You have to behave your way into a braver culture. Creating and scaling a 'courage mindset' unlocks the conversations, innovation, and learning needed to adapt faster, manage risk better, and drive stronger outcomes for all stakeholders. But don't wait for someone else to lead the way. The Courage Advantage Just as fear is contagious, so too is courage. When you choose courage over comfort, service over self-protection and decide to step up, speak up, and lead with conviction—guided by values, not emotions—you embolden others to cross the courage gap too. Deloitte research indicates that teams with leaders who actively encourage dissent and constructive challenge are 42% more likely to identify emerging risks early and 67% more likely to implement successful innovation initiatives. A Boston Consulting Group study found that diverse teams with high psychological safety generate 20% more revenue from innovation than their peers. The future will be fraught with disruption, uncertainty, and risk. Yet just as we are our greatest source of risk—in how we perceive and respond to the challenges around us—we are also our greatest source of overcoming it. We do that every time we close the gap between what we're doing and what we're capable of doing - individually and collectively. The best teams aren't distinguished by having the smartest people or the most resources. What sets them apart is their willingness to close the courage gap—to embrace productive friction, voice concerns, and engage in brave conversations that drive exceptional results. Margie Warrell, PhD is a leadership speake r, advisor, and bestselling author of The Courage Gap whose expertise in courage-building helps organizations foster cultures where candor flourishes and better decisions emerge. For keynotes, workshops, or advisory services for your board or leadership team, visit
