Executive Management or the C-Suite, are a structure of corporate governance that is responsible for implementing decisions and directives of the Board. The C-Suite is usually led by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and in my jurisdiction, most CEOs are also Executive Directors on the Board.

It is an important recognition that the officer responsible to the Board for the actions of the C-Suite is the CEO. In my humble experience as a corporate governance advisor, I have found myself clarifying that the CEO had the authority to present the executive management reports to the Board him/herself and if invited to present the report, the other members of the C-Suite do so on behalf of the CEO. This entails that the the C-Suite members are expected to be in sync with the CEO in terms of the submission and not to contradict each other at the point of making the presentation to the Board.

It is incumbent upon the respective C-Suite members to ensure that submissions they prepare as professionals in their fields of expertise, meet the approval of the CEO so that he/she can have ownership of the submission and embrace the responsibility to the Board for the same.

Taking it upon oneself to attain levels of confidence that the CEO has buy-in and will be able to defend the submission to the Board if necessary.

To be mindful that the executive management report you so meticulously prepare as part of the C-Suite is for the C-Suite as a collective , represented by the CEO who is responsible and accountable to the Board, is critical.

Lastly, the fact that the CEO is ultimately responsible to the Board, does not mean that the C-Suite members should be oblivious to the goings on regarding the submission. The expectation is that professional support is rendered to the CEO with permission from the CEO. It is called effective teamwork!

letsshare!