Boardroom Synergy

The working dynamics between board directors, and how they collaborate when making key decisions, is a topic of endless curiosity for me. How do directors strike the right balance between constructive dissent and getting along?

Should directors be a team or behave more like a team? And what can we, as directors, learn from high-performing sports teams?

No matter how many superstars are at the board table, a key driver of success is the ability to build strong working relationships between directors, management, and the board chair. The same is true for a championship sports team. Superstars may come together to form a so-called dream team, but that’s still no guarantee of success.

While I was watching some recent interviews with successful coaches and players in various team sports, it got me thinking about what we can learn from how they’re cultivating a winning culture in their teams — and how we could migrate their successful strategies from the locker room to the boardroom.

In the sports world, players often talk about working hard for their teammates. If they do their job well, their teammates have every opportunity to succeed. When they play for each other, the whole team moves forward.

Can we apply this cultural aspect of team sports to our board work? By fostering a culture of teamwork and collaboration, can we, as board directors, build stronger bonds with each other, and achieve better outcomes in the process?

That leads me to the premise of this week’s edition of The Savvy Director:

“Collaboration is essential for success in both sports and business. By adopting strategies from successful sports teams, board directors can foster a culture of teamwork, leverage each other's strengths, and work toward shared goals to drive their organizations forward.”

 For this discussion, let’s assume that directors know their role, understand the job description, and commit to do the work required of a board member. If that’s not the case, today’s premise won’t be their cup of tea.

From the Locker Room to the Boardroom

Let’s explore some key aspects of collaboration and how they can be applied by board directors, drawing parallels with successful sports teams.

Building Trust and Respect

• Sports Teams. To perform their roles effectively, team players need to trust each other and respect each other's abilities. Trust and respect are built through consistent performance, open communication, and mutual support.
• Board Directors. Board members need the same kind of mutual trust and respect so their board can work effectively. They can build this kind of trust by getting to know each other on a personal and professional level, appreciating each other's contributions, and fostering an environment where everyone feels valued and heard.

Leveraging Each Other's Strengths

• Sports Teams. Coaches select players whose skills complement each other, creating a balanced and effective team. For example, a good basketball team would have a mix of strong defenders, skilled shooters, and strategic playmakers.
• Board Directors. In the same way, an effective board is made up of individuals who each have their own knowledge base, lived experience, and unique set of skills. Board members — especially the chair — should recognize and utilize the expertise that each person brings to the table. This could mean assigning tasks based on individual strengths or seeking input from members with specific expertise. The outcome will be better informed board decisions and more innovative ideas to address challenges.

Encouraging Open Communication

• Sports Teams. On a team, good communication is crucial for coordinating plays and developing strategies. The players need to communicate clearly and quickly to allow the team to adapt to rapidly changing situations during a game or race.
• Board Directors. On a board, open communication ensures that every director — regardless of their background or the length of their board tenure — feels heard and valued. Creating a safe space for honest dialogue, providing constructive feedback, and encouraging everyone to find their voice leads to more robust discussions and better decision-making.

Addressing Power Struggles

• Sports Teams. When it comes to group dynamics, sports teams experience interpersonal conflict and power struggles just like any group of people. Team leaders must be alert to these dynamics, working actively to maintain harmony and helping everyone to focus on their common goal. Clear roles and responsibilities are important, as are conflict resolution strategies.
• Board Directors. Conflicts arise within boardrooms too — the same kind of group dynamics are at play. At the board table, role clarity, equal access to information, and transparency in decision-making all help to reduce power struggles. Some tactics to improve board dynamics include setting clear guidelines for decision-making, rotating leadership roles, and fostering a healthy board culture.

Aligning Priorities

• Sports Teams. Teams focus on a clear and obvious shared goal, whether it’s winning today or taking home a championship. This common goal aligns individual efforts, energizes players, and helps keep everyone motivated.
• Board Directors. Board members also have a shared goal — driving the organization forward — but let’s face it, it’s easier for them to lose sight of the goal. Boards get distracted by governance details, bogged down in compliance, and overwhelmed by their oversight responsibilities. Keeping their eyes on the prize can be a challenge. This is where a clear purpose and a well-developed strategy can make all the difference. When the board sets clear goals, makes time in every board agenda to review progress, and ensures that resources — such as sufficient budget — are made available, there’s a good chance that priorities will remain aligned.

Top Five Power Skills for Board Members

What skills could we be working on to help us be the best board teammates possible?

1. Communication skills. Effective communication is essential for directors to work well with each other and with management, engage with stakeholders, and understand the organization’s needs.
2. Collaboration skills. “Collaborate with Others” isn’t just one of The Six Key Habits of the Savvy Director, it’s absolutely essential for any director to be able to add value to a board and help the organization achieve its goals.
3. Emotional intelligence. Directors need to be aware of their own emotions — as well as those of others around the board table — and be able to manage those emotions to build strong relationships and help the board make sound decisions.
4. Critical thinking skills. Directors are required to objectively analyze complex information, evaluate different options, and form conclusions.
5. Leadership skills. Directors must be able to provide strategic guidance, inspire others, and drive change within the organization.

With these skills in place, board directors can work together to create a collaborative and effective team, much like a winning sports team. The result won’t be a trophy or a championship ring, but it will be enhanced decision-making, more productive meetings, and a healthier board culture.

The Top Five Power Skills above have links into our Savvy Director archive. Each link can take you on a deeper dive into building a high-performance board team with approaches like those used at the highest levels of team sports.

In Summary

Collaboration is key for both sports teams and boards. By taking their cues from the world of sports, savvy directors can build stronger bonds and foster a culture of teamwork.

When they leverage each other's strengths, stay focused on their shared goal, show respect for one another, and intentionally build trust among themselves, directors are building more effective boards that drive their organizations forward to achieve better outcomes.

Your takeaways:

• The biggest risk to building and sustaining a high-performing board is a deterioration of trust among directors or between the board and management. The same thing can happen to sports teams after successive championships. Be on the lookout for it and, if you see it, urge your board to think about renewing its approach to leadership transition and succession planning.
• Get to know the personal intention of every director on your board. Why do they choose to serve? Do they have a hidden agenda? Ask yourself how you can tap into those insights when raising a question or making a point during a meeting.
• Use the tools at hand to foster collaboration when onboarding new directors.
• The most important thing a board chair can do to support a winning board culture might be creating a safe space for all directors to contribute and ask their questions. That said, every one of us has a role to play when cultivating a healthy board culture.
• As directors, we have two primary tools to cultivate the conditions for effective decision-making in the boardroom — asking good questions and building strong relationships.

Resources:

• Governance lessons from sports – a guide to directors. Mark Watson. LinkedIn. August 2023.
• Is Your Board a High Value Team? Alice Sayant, ICD.D. The Savvy Director. March 2022.
• Building a Healthy Board Culture. Scott Baldwin, ICD.D. The Savvy Director. October 2024.
• The Science of Team Building: Creating High Performance Teams. Lynda Silsbee. Forbes. October 2024.
• From Locker Room to Boardroom: Leveraging Elite Sports Insights for Corporate Success. Team (EQ). January 2024.

Thank you.

Scott

Scott Baldwin is a certified corporate director (ICD.D) and co-founder of DirectorPrep.com – an online membership with practical tools for board directors who choose a growth mindset.

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