Inside the Boardroom: What Exceptional Directors Reveal About the Board–CEO Partnership

CEOs and Board Chairs engage me to advise their boards on matters of strategy, governance, and the effectiveness of the board–CEO partnership. That work provides a window into how boards actually operate — and how exceptional directors strengthen strategic decision-making.

The business context continues to evolve, becoming increasingly complex and more transient. As conditions shift, strategy governance becomes even more important. Boards that bring diverse expertise and external perspective strengthen both leadership decision-making and the board–CEO partnership.

Leaders rarely have the opportunity to hear directly from experienced directors outside their own organizations. The 5050 Women on Boards DC Annual Conversation on Board Leadership provides precisely that opportunity.

A recent event brought together experienced directors and executives for a candid conversation about how boards add value in a changing governance environment.

Directors add value to strategic and ethical decisions

Directors Deborah Majoras and Ted Leonsis got real during their fireside chat. They revealed key insights about the evolving role of the board amid great change in business governance and environments. Majoras and Leonsis addressed how boards can – and should – add value to strategic and ethical decisions.

“Whenever new technology emerges, the bad actors are first to capitalize.”  Ted Leonsis

Then Jenna Howard dove deeper, leading a rich panel discussion with accomplished Directors, Erin Essenmacher, Barbara Kunz, and Maria Rivas. Their conversation emphasized mission, stakeholder connection, and governance.

“Always be a good steward for the stakeholders.”  Erin Essenmacher

Why the Board–CEO Partnership Matters More Than Ever

The audience – accomplished executives and aspiring and actively serving board members – challenged panelists and speakers to speak candidly about thorny issues facing business leaders.

Strong boards reinforce the board–CEO partnership in practical ways and add value to strategic and ethical decisions. Three ways directors strengthen strategy and governance stood out:

• Establish guardrails for emerging technology.

  Directors have a fiduciary duty to help define how the business engages with new technologies and their implications. Their external perspective strengthens management’s ability to evaluate risks, benefits, and tradeoffs.

• Reflect the stakeholders the company serves. 

  Boards act as a mirror of the broader ecosystem around the business. Rather than focusing on labels such as DEI initiatives, directors consider whether the board has built the perspective and participation needed to sustain sound decisions.

• Ask the questions others overlook.

  Directors challenge assumptions about both people and technology. With AI, for example, large language models prioritize common datapoints and can obscure outliers. Directors surface those blind spots by asking the right questions.

“The best boards include both broad and deep expertise.” Barbara Kunz

Speakers and panelists emphasized that there is no single path to the boardroom. One way executives prepare is by working effectively with their own boards. I often advise senior leaders to engage their boards to “feed forward” (as I discussed with Chief Executive). That approach depends on a strong board–management partnership and thoughtful questioning by executives, paired with expansive thinking from directors.

How you show up: most underestimated boardroom skill.

Once in the boardroom, how you “show up” may be the most underrated – and impactful – skill. It’s a constant balance of competence and expertise, and breadth and depth.

Effective directors balance deep expertise with the ability to connect ideas across disciplines. Some contribute technical depth in specific domains. Others create strategic clarity by linking issues, risks, and opportunities across the business (as I wrote for Corporate Boardmember here).

The strongest boards benefit from both — along with leaders who maintain a clear connection to the company’s mission and stakeholders.

Interestingly, the questions you ask (or withhold) reveal equally what you know and how well you’ve considered the broader implications of the topic at hand. You need not have all the answers. You do need to pose powerful questions.

For CEOs and board chairs, the question is rarely whether governance matters. The real question is whether the board–CEO partnership is strengthening strategy or quietly slowing it.

I work with CEOs, boards, and senior leadership teams to strengthen the conversations and decisions that happen inside the boardroom — ensuring strategy, governance, and leadership align to produce measurable results.

If that conversation would be useful for you or your board, reach out. I welcome the discussion.