The Mindful Exclusion
Governance Report
The first Mindful Exclusion Governance Report, published in 2021, captured a unique moment when much of the business sector was caught off guard by the Covid 19 pandemic. The timeless results from this report's quantitative study help to illuminate why boardroom intentions don't always translate into boardroom actions. The 2021 report also identified three mindful practices that help boards and executive teams to 'go beyond their bubble', resulting in more effective governance.
The second report, published eighteen months later in 2022, reinforced the impact of these three mindful practices and linked them to financial performance. It also showed how many organisations that had started to 'engage beyond their bubble' following Covid, had now reverted back to business as usual.
Below you will find links to both reports, organised by key insights. Note that the 2021 report was released in three separate sections - Part I: Agenda, Part II: Dynamics and Part III: Composition.
About the Report
The 2021 and 2022 Mindful Exclusion Governance Reports draw from:
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a quantitative survey of Company Secretaries, Board Members, and C-suite leaders
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extensive qualitative interviews and roundtables
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a comprehensive scan of industry reports
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academic research on human behaviour
Both reports have been created by the Centre for Synchronous Leadership and published in collaboration with The Chartered Governance Institute UK&I. This partnership has enabled wider participation in the survey and allowed us to tap into the perspective of Company Secretaries, who often hold a more objective view of boardroom decision making by virtue of their role.
Key Insight #1
Boardroom topics that lie outside of the traditional 'bubble of familiarity' often fail to get air time, even if they are understood to be important. This can leave organisations on the back foot - unprepared for a crisis that they could have seen coming.
In Part I of the 2021 report (pdf below), we saw that prior to Covid, many organisations failed to prioritise digital / tech, climate change, and all topics relating to employees. Following Covid, when these same organisations made time to horizon scan by looking ahead and actively discussing blind spots, this prioritisation behaviour changed. Part I also showed how boardrooms that had made time to horizon scan before Covid hit were less likely to be caught off guard. The escalating and intersectional impact of the three megatrends (AI, climate change, geopolitics) on the business sector make this mindful practice more important than ever.
Mindful Exclusion
Governance Report
2021 - Part I: Agenda
Key Insight #2
Many boardroom leaders are reluctant to get out of their 'bubble of comfort' and show vulnerability - by asking for help, admitting mistakes, and giving or receiving feedback. Demonstrating these behaviours is essential for managing risk, accessing collective intelligence, and setting the tone for a healthy culture.
In Part II of the 2021 report (pdf below), we saw that many boardrooms had low levels of psychological safety - known to be one of the top predictors of team performance. Boardrooms that invested time to align as a team were markedly different. They were more likely to ask for help, admit mistakes, give and receive feedback, challenge core assumptions and actively seek different points of view. These behaviours translated beyond the boardroom into a receptivity to engaging with people who represented their blind spots. Traditional board members are unlikely to have expertise that relates to AI, climate change, or geopolitics. Their willingness to empower and learn from those who do has never been more important.
Mindful Exclusion
Governance Report
2021 - Part II: Dynamics
Key Insight #3
It is easy for boardrooms to become 'bubbles of impressive people' due to the high status of their members. This leads to complacency and insular thinking - with leaders reluctant to disrupt the status quo, validate diverse perspectives, or revisit their definition of success, for fear of becoming less relevant.
In Part III of the 2021 report (pdf below), we saw that attachment to power was an issue in many boardrooms. This was manifested in a lack of board / executive refreshment, poor accountability, and poor pipeline cultivation. Boardrooms with a healthier flow of power were more likely to prioritise diversity of expertise and lived experience when recruiting new members and to value contributions from staff of all levels. The willingness of organisations to see beyond the status quo, tune into diverse stakeholders, and revisit their definition of success is more important than ever given the pace and scale of disruption brought on by the megatrends.
Mindful Exclusion
Governance Report
2021 - Part III: Composition
Key Insights #4
It is easy to forget that we have blind spots, and that there is a world beyond our bubble, particularly when we are powerful and making rational decisions based on experience. Proximity to diverse stakeholders can help us preserve this awareness.
The 2021 report showed a massive increase in the number of boardrooms proactively looking for blind spots, after having been caught off guard by Covid. Eighteen months later, the 2022 report (pdf below) showed that this behaviour had reverted back to pre-Covid levels. The 2022 report also provided more evidence of what we had termed 'compulsive homogeneity'. Boardrooms that lacked individuals of a certain type, were the least likely to prioritise finding them. This applied equally to demographics and expertise. E.g., boardrooms with no risk management or cybersecurity expertise didn't think they were missing anything. At a time when a top concern of many boards was talent due to "the great resignation", the lack of HR expertise in the room manifested in a failure to prioritise employee-related issues. In this report, we also discovered that boardrooms that 'engaged beyond their bubble' (by horizon scanning) had a more informed understanding of ALL of their stakeholders. This included investors, regulators, and employees along with suppliers and the communities in which they operated. As all stakeholders struggle to keep up with the pace and scale of the megatrends, the benefits of staying attuned are greater than ever before. Moreover, there is an opportunity for boardrooms to upskill and seek out new forms of expertise - e.g., in technology, sustainability, people - that will equip them to anticipate and respond to the complex web of decisions that lie ahead.
Mindful Exclusion
Governance Report
2022 - all sections
