One may call it force of habit or simply, personality. As Secretary to the Board, I always endeavour to meet each Board Member as they enter the building and usher them to the Boardroom to take a seat and comfortably settle down.

However, this article is not about how to settle Directors into the Boardroom. It is about certain expectations of corporate governors at Board level as they deliberate business of the organisation which border on personality and decorum.

I have carefully selected two personality characteristics to discuss this matter and have hypothetically called them Directors Ego and Critic, respectively and I hope it will be clear as we proceed as to why I have done so.

“Ego” is defined as “a person’s sense of self esteem or self-importance” while “critic” is defined as “a person who expresses an unfavorable opinion of something”.

I am of the view that generally, human beings have aspects of egoism and criticism at relative levels. Having said that, I assume that governors carry these traits with them as they deliberate.

There are however, situations when governors can become “egocentric” or self centred which has the negative connotation of thinking of oneself, without regard to the feelings or desires of others. There are also instances that criticism lacks any amount of critique and amounts to a baseless objection to an issue. The sum of the situations cited is discomfort and impediments to progress.

The question is, where do we strike a balance? In my view, the two Directors actually do have a seat in the Boardroom that to the naked eye looks empty. I say this because one cannot throw out their personality traits of self-esteem and opinion but can reserve them in the seat of an observer to the meeting. An observer usually exercises restraint to comment in the meeting until an opportune time for his/her feedback is required. This way, the observer would have gathered all necessary information to be able to deliver a reasoned and helpful submission. Because each Director generally possesses these personality characteristics, the clarion call to them is to introspect and self-monitor as they perform their duties towards the organisation.

As we take our seats in the Board Meeting, we are urged to remember that between ourselves and the next visible Director, there is an invisible, yet influential seat reserved for Ego and Critic that we can occasionally call upon after careful consideration.

Thank you.