“The sweet spot” is how Ken Daly describes his place as president and CEO of the National Association of Corporate Directors. Daly was named last May to head the 30-year-old not-for-profit association based in Washington, D.C. He succeeds Roger Raber, who ran NACD from 1999 until his retirement earlier this year. During Raber’s tenure, NACD membership grew 300 percent and its influence flourished as an educator, adviser, and commentator on board-related issues. “We want to help members understand how to be better directors,” says Daly.
What will be the two or three main issues for directors in the coming year?
There will be a continued change in the directors’ role. Because of new laws and regulations, directors have been more compliance oriented. But there’s a morphing out of that focus into more of a performance mode. Compliance, obviously, is part of directors’ performance; it’s the gatekeeper role. But directors are getting away from pure compliance and becoming more concerned with issues like strategy and adding value for shareholders. There is also renewed interest in their role of providing oversight on risk management.
What have you learned about the opportunities and the challenges during your tenure so far?
Opportunities are many. We have a highly dedicated staff—people whose hearts and heads are in the right place. When I think of our membership, it’s clear to me that board members have a real thirst for education, and they value peer education more than any other kind. Our 21 chapters are ready to serve the needs of our membership. One of the more interesting aspects is that when we do research and push into the field, we hear what our members are thinking and it helps inform the kinds of programs we develop.
What kinds of activities will you be focused on in this upcoming year?
We want to work more closely to develop creative ways to be interactive with chapters. Here’s an example: We think that the area of compensation that the SEC has been active in, issuing deficiency letters and inquiries, is an important one for board members. We need to create a special education module for the chapters to implement locally on areas such as compensation. Then we want to help directors in their local communities understand boardroom and governance issues better. And we want to help directors interact with their peers. We will spend a lot of time and capital on new and strengthened education programs. Some new programs will be directly related to the committee structures.
What is the elevator pitch for why directors should become NACD members?
There are plenty of reasons: peer-to-peer encounters, the opportunity for camaraderie with other directors and networking, the education tied to our Blue Ribbon Commission, the quality of our information which is cited by others, such as the Delaware Chancery Court. To do those things, we will need to have a transparent process that has sufficient due diligence to vet ideas for the benefit of directors. The final reason, and perhaps the biggest and least understood reason, is the ability of our members to participate in a process that culminates in the NACD being the voice of directors.