The secret to strengthening your controls in a crisis

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‘Corporate governance is the unsung hero of a great organisation. When it’s good you barely notice it’s there, but when it’s poor it can bring down the company.’ – Erika Percival.

As the nights draw in the resilience of business leaders is being tested once again with England’s second covid-19 lockdown. Most of us are now used to the remote working arrangements and for some perhaps the ‘new normal’ just feels normal. With remote working, your control as a leader can dissipate and important decisions can more easily be made without your input. Now is the time to streamline and strengthen your company’s controls, processes and procedures to avoid decision making being your biggest risk.

Overcoming this crisis is more than just the here and the now, it’s about improved ways of working and planning for future success. Companies that get ahead now will be the long-term winners.

The crisis has put every company’s existing decision-making structures under pressure and exposed problem areas. Many companies have ‘stepped over’ their existing bureaucratic governance processes and procedures to keep the business afloat (exactly what you should be doing if your processes don’t work and you need to pivot quickly). That said this is a stop gap not a solution.

Continuing to maintain structures that were devised at short notice to mitigate a crisis will not adequately support future business growth. Over time, poor governance negatively impacts company culture until it becomes weak and fragmented, it erodes senior management power, creates inefficiencies and worst of all it gives competitors an opportunity to outperform on a like for like basis with the same assets. If you want to come out of this crisis more resilient, good governance is key.

Key benefits of good governance:

  1. competitive advantage;
  2. increases the company’s and director’s reputation;
  3. enables uncertainty to be embraced;
  4. fosters accountability;
  5. supports business growth;
  6. increases investor/shareholder trust and confidence;
  7. creates time and money saving efficiencies;
  8. reduces conflicts and improves company culture;
  9. increases the chances of a successful fund raise; and
  10. repels unwanted M&A.

Want to come out of the crisis stronger?

Check our FREE guide to improve these 7 areas and get an immediate governance uplift.

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