According to a the Law and Boardroom Study annual report, general counsel also need to focus on regulatory compliance and concerns over leadership succession whilst social media has also caused consternation.
Assessing threats
The study, conducted by Corporate Board Member and FTI Consulting, looked to assess the threats to directors in 2013.The research said that only a third of general counsel felt ‘very confident’ about their company’s ability to respond quickly to a security breach and determine whether confidential data had been compromised whilst less than a quarter of directors felt confident.
Commenting on the findings, Michael Pace, senior managing director and co-leader of the FTI Consulting Global Risk and Investigations team says that businesses lack confidence when responding to a security breach. “To help companies manage and mitigate this risk, they need to inventory and map their IP assets, secure their data, and test their networks and systems for gaps on a constant basis,” he said, adding that board level concern is ‘complicated by the fact that IT infrastructure and underlying technologies are fairly opaque to board members.’
Poor understanding of social media
Meanwhile only 16 per cent of directors say they have a good understanding of the risks associated with social media. “It is critical that organizations have a social media strategy and policies in place in order to manage crisis and—perhaps more importantly—to capture the opportunities that social media provides,” says Elizabeth Saunders, senior managing director and Americas chairman of the FTI Consulting Strategic Communications.
Executive pay
The survey goes on to state that executive compensation regarding say-on-pay votes overwhelmingly tops the list of concerns in regards to time management. As reported, the forfeit of time is a result of the processes and policies created with the Dodd-Frank legislation. Directors feel that they can handle compensation risks in the workplace and with that stems another issue, according to the study.
Effectiveness
When asked what information directors need to be effective, they responded with succession planning and IT risk, strategic planning, crisis management, and competitive/marketplace information.
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