As we continue with the journey as members of the C- Suite, it would be most beneficial to understand the C-Suite structure and where you are positioned.
The C-Suite is primarily a team with a lead. The team lead would, in a typical case, be the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). A point that members of the C-Suite should internalize very quickly is that the CEO is responsible and accountable to the next level in the governance structure for the actions of his/her team members.
The contribution of the C-Suite to the team would culminate into something that the CEO will take ownership over in terms of accountability and responsibility to the Board. One of the things that I say just to emphasize this point, is that the CEO can choose to present the paper that a C-Suite member has prepared and the CEO has endorsed, to the Board, on his own in his capacity as CEO. What this should remind C-Suite members is that firstly, there is a heirarchy within the C-Suite with the CEO at the helm and the other members laterally below the CEO, and secondly that when a member of the C- Suite addresses the Board, the presumption is that due permission to do so has been granted by the CEO.
Having made the point in the preceding paragraph, it is also worth noting that members should also internalize some exceptions. There are some members of the C-Suite whose roles entail a certain degree of independence from the CEO. Officers such as Chief Internal Auditors and Company Secretaries have roles that entail that at times, they have direct interface with the Board. Most of the Internal Audit Charters that I have come across will state that the Chief Internal Auditor would functionally report to the Board or respective Board Committee and administratively report to the CEO when it came to reports to the Board because of the independence bestowed on the office of the Chief Internal Auditor, particularly that the CEO is a potential auditee. For a Company Secretary, the role entails service to the Board for governance issues and activities at that level as well as that of being a corporate governance gate keeper. The point to appreciate is that the structures of governance are not designed to encourage chaos in execution of duties by these officers. The onus to work in harmony is on the said officers by respecting authority and management of dynamics using emotional and ethical intelligence. In other words, understand your role and more importantly, that you are not employed to create rifts, divisions and corporate battles which do nothing but damage to the organization and individuals involved.
One of the super powers of governance actors is self awareness and monitoring. Developing these attributes early in the journey will assist in navigating the corporate environment and mitigate and even avoid some pitfalls!
Hunger to give your team the best of what you were engaged for!
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