The Healthy Departure: Considerations for Effective Offboarding

In brief: Long viewed as a point of arrival rather than a point of entry, a board seat is not what it used to be. Gone should be the days when re-nomination is assumed as a given. As performance expectations of board members continue to increase, especially during a time of crisis, boards need to think clearly and critically about the skillset of their members, including themselves, and whether those skills align with the future needs of their company. While most boards have a robust onboarding process, few have similar discipline around directors leaving the board or off-boarding—voluntarily or for performance reasons. 

This resource can help your board to

• set expectations for off-boarding 

• evaluate if a board member should be removed 

• identify strategies for engagement post-directorship  

Relevant audience: lead directors, nominating and governance committee chair and members, full board

Long viewed as a point of arrival rather than a point of entry, a board seat is not what it used to be. Gone should be the days when re-nomination is assumed as a given. A significant minority (46%) of directors believe that members of their boards—including board leaders, board chairs, lead directors, and committee chairs—should be replaced. That statistic is a sign of an insufficient process that has failed to keep up with the increasing expectations of board performance by all stakeholders, both internal and external.