GovernanceExcellence - 21st Century Governance

Introducing GovernanceExcellence

rmclean — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 15:27:51 -0400

Welcome to GovernanceExcellence! We are committed to offering governance professionals a unique and continuing opportunity to strengthen corporate governance in your organization, in Canada and ulimately in other jurisdictions also.

The GovernanceExcellence community exists to provide a virtual space in which governance professionals can collaborate to share insights and perspectives on governance best practices, now and in the future.

In the early stages of this initiative, we are seeking guidance from you, as the earliest visitors to this site, about how GovernanceExcellence should evolve.

21st Century Governance

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 22:01:27 -0400

GE Toolkit Roadmap

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 20:21:19 -0400

Please stay tuned .... more information about this coming soon!

Audit Committee Performance Support System

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 20:18:55 -0400

For details about the Audit Committee Performance Support System, please see:

ACPSS

Introduction to the GE Toolkit

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 20:12:40 -0400

Please stay tuned .... more information about this coming soon!

2006 Symposium: The Evolving Role of the Governance Professional

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 19:57:15 -0400

The theme of the 2006 Symposium on Corporate Effectiveness, to be held on December 7 and 8 in Toronto, is "The Evolving Role of the Governance Professional".

For additional information, please visit the ICSA website.

Governance Evolution 30 Questions

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 17:23:37 -0400

Governance Evolution 30 Questions

GovernanceExcellence: 30 Questions about the Evolution of Governance

Evolution of Governance: In parallel with the discussions on the regulations and best practices which define Governance is an equally important set of discussions about the consequent organizational implications. An organization seeking to optimize its performance in Governance faces scope, role, responsibility and reporting issues of increasing complexity for how Governance activities are effectively managed.

The Evolution of Governance Module provides 30 questions which will help an organization examine its practices in these areas, to help build consensus within the organization of what practices might be and to benchmark the organization against other similar organizations. It is partly based on ideas discussed in the Discussion Paper on "The Evolution of Governance: A Scenario for Best Practices in 21st Century Governance".

ACPSS Module A: Reporting and Disclosure

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 16:31:04 -0400

ACPSS Module A: Reporting and Disclosure

Reporting and Disclosure Module of the CICA's Accounting Committee Performance Support System

The Audit Committee Performance Support System (ACPSS) from the Canadian
Institute of Chartered Accountants is a detailed and comprehensive tool which can help Audit Committees in meeting the new requirements such as those in Multilateral Instrument 52-110, issued by the Canadian Securities Administrators, as well as improving the overall effectiveness and efficiency of their operations. The assessment questionnaires are based on the conceptual framework set out in CICA's leading publication, Integrity in the Spotlight: Opportunities for Audit Committees.

CICA Audit Committee 20 Questions

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 15:55:31 -0400

CICA Audit Committee 20 Questions

CICA's "20 Questions Boards Should Ask About the Audit Committee"

Is there a Chief Governance Officer in your future?

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 15:29:19 -0400

An internet search on “Chief Governance Officer” using your favourite search engine will turn up almost 10,000 hits, including recent appointments, policy documents, and articles. Included among them is a recent survey of 400 U.S. companies, 16% of which have appointed a Chief Governance Officer, and over 50% a chief compliance officer.

This emerging trend is of interest not only to corporate secretaries, but is significant for other professionals also. Bill Swirsky, Vice President for Knowledge Development of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants notes that “there are many Chief Financial Officers in smaller companies who also have responsibility for corporate governance. Formalizing the CGO role could help these individuals, and the Boards and other professionals they work with, have a better understanding of expectations and the competencies required to meet them.”

"Building a Board" 20 Questions

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 15:19:39 -0400

"Building a Board" 20 Questions

CICA's "20 Questions Boards on Building a Board"

“20 Questions Directors Should Ask About Building a Board” is one of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants’ series of publications on governance
for directors. The Risk Management and Governance Board of the CICA developed this briefing to help Corporate Governance Committees and others who are responsible
for selecting members for Boards of Directors. The document addresses the factors that contribute to the creation of an effective Board and describes a process for recruiting directors. It is intended primarily for directors of companies that are listed on stock exchanges in Canada and the United States but the principles it describes are
also, as good practice, appropriate for other organizations.

Corporate Governance Guidelines (58-201)

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 14:56:06 -0400

Corporate Governance Guidelines

Corporate Governance Guidelines based on National Policy Instrument 58-201

National Policy 58-201 “Corporate Governance Guidelines” reflects the impact of corporate governance developments in the U.S. and around the world in the Canadian context. It is designed to assist organizations in developing their own corporate governance practices.

The GovernanceExcellence Module provides a quick and easy way for an organization to assess its practices against this framework of best practices, to help build consensus within the organization of what practices might be and to benchmark the organization against other similar organizations.

CSCS 2006 Benchmarking Survey

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 14:20:39 -0400

CSCS 2006 Benchmarking Survey

It is a tradition at the CSCS Annual Conference on Corporate Governance in September to benchmark activities/best practices/ work environments/compliance processes in governance with colleagues across Canada.

The online survey provides an opportunity to find out more about how your organization's practices related to peer organizations in areas such as:

Board structures
Meeting practices
Reporting relationships
Resource allocation
Electronic delivery
Committee structures and composition
Board and Director evaluation practices
Annual Meeting practices
Corporate Secretarial practices
Compliance processes
...And more!

In 2006, this exercise was done on the web rather than live at the event in Kelowna, BC from September 10th to September 13th. We are grateful to BenchmarkAction for hosting the online survey.

Comments on the "Evolution of Governance" Discussion Paper

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 13:43:57 -0400

The "Evolution of Governance: A Scenario for Best Practices in 21st Century Governance" presents a number of ideas that some will consider controversial

We encourage you to add your voice to the debate!

Should the GovernanceExcellence Network launch a CGO Working/Focus Group

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 13:28:31 -0400

Yes

86% (6 votes)

14% (1 vote)

Total votes: 7

GE Toolkit Beta Test Introduction

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 12:23:14 -0400

A number of organizations prominent in governance, including ICSA, CSCS, the CICA, and BenchmarkAction, are collaborating in the development of an initial set of online tools to enable:

organizations to benchmark current and future positioning relative to governance best practices and peer organizations;
exploration and consensus-building on the need for and direction of change;
priority / process / change management tools for the corporate secretary / CGO;
keeping up to date on key issues and priorities for the GE community.

At the present time, there are two types of tools available:

Overview Modules that provide various high-level perspectives on the positioning of the organization relative to governance best practices
In-depth Modules that drill down in detail into a specific area of governance.

Currently there are five Overview Modules that are being offered in an Open beta test in 2006. If you are interested in participating, please follow the links for more information about the available Modules, and the procedures for registering and logging in.

Agenda for the CGO Working / Focus Group

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 12:13:28 -0400

What should be the agenda for the CGO Working / Focus Group?

The following is a list of initial suggestions:

Role and responsibilities of the Chief Governance Officer Function / Secretariat;
Similarities and differences between a CGO function and today’s Corporate Secretariat;
Competencies required by CGOs, and potential career paths;
Who should the CGO Function / Secretariat should report to?
Transition strategies

What other issues should be addressed? Please contribute your suggestions!

Priorities for GovernanceExcellence Working/Focus Groups

rmclean — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 12:04:06 -0400

What should be the priorities for GovernanceExcellence Working or Focus Groups?

The following is a list of current suggestions:

Best practices for future governance
Defining the CGO Function / Secretariat
Systems and technologies to support the CGO
Enhanced corporate performance measurement for future Governance

Are there other topics that should be addressed by a GovernanceExcellence Working or Focus Group? Please contribute your suggestions

How to login

rmclean — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 16:12:01 -0400

The GE Toolkit modules are hosted on the BenchmarkAction server at https://secure.benchmarkaction.com

Once you have registered, you can login at:

After providing your userid (i.e., your email address), and password, you will see a list of your subscriptions on the BenchmarkAction server. For the GE Toolkit Beta, please select "GovernanceBeta".

You will then be offered a listing of available modules. Please select the module you wish to use for this session.

Discussion Paper on the Evolution of Governance: A Scenario for Best Practices in 21st Century Governance

rmclean — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 14:37:54 -0400

(Scroll to the bottom for a downloadable pdf version)

The Evolution of Governance: A Scenario for Best Practices in 21st Century Governance

A Discussion Paper

September, 2006

Rob McLean and Ron McCullough

BenchmarkAction Inc.

1. Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to lay out a set of ideas that are intended to stimulate discussion among governance professionals about where corporate governance is headed.