The Board Effectiveness Review Process
A guide to how we approach Board Effectiveness Reviews: what's covered, how the process runs, and what your Board can expect.
An external, independent perspective on how your Board performs
A Board Effectiveness Review - sometimes called a board evaluation or board performance review - is a structured, independent assessment of how well a Board and its Committees are working: how they set strategy, manage risk, engage with each other and with the Executive team, and where they could add more value.
Under the UK Corporate Governance Code, boards of FTSE 350 companies are expected to have their evaluation externally facilitated at least once every three years. Many AIM-listed, privately owned, private equity-backed and not-for-profit organisations choose to do the same, recognising that a robust, independently facilitated review is one of the most valuable investments a Board can make in its own effectiveness.
We conduct Board Effectiveness Reviews and board evaluations for main Boards and their Committees, working directly with the Chair, Senior Independent Director and Company Secretary throughout the process.
A tailored approach for every Board
Every review begins with developing a tailored approach to meet the specific needs of the organisation. We start with a contextual review to understand its priorities, opportunities, challenges, and the stage of evolution of the Board.
We always take a forward-looking perspective, considering how the Board needs to continue evolving to meet the organisation's priorities now and over the coming years.
We place a strong emphasis on Board and Committee roles, focus, alignment and impact - reviewing strategy development and key strategic priorities; challenges, risks and risk management; financial oversight and KPIs; stakeholder engagement; people, talent management and succession planning; purpose, values and culture; Board and Committee composition; and how the Board operates.
We put considerable focus on team dynamics: relationships, leadership by the Chair, individual and collective engagement, communication and impact, information flows, and how decisions are made.
We bring insight and judgement based on many years of experience - not just in Board Effectiveness work, but from sitting on Boards ourselves as Chair and Non-Executive Director, and from acting as a sounding board and advisor to Chairs, Board members and Executives.
Our style is to be empathetic, constructive, pragmatic and diplomatically direct.
How a review runs
Background familiarisation and preparation
We sign a confidentiality agreement and are given access to the Board portal. We read a selection of Board and Committee papers from the past twelve months, together with relevant strategy documents and any previous evaluation reports, and agree the scope and timing of interviews with the Chair.
Formal interviews
We meet individually with each Board member, usually in person, allowing up to two hours per discussion. We prepare a tailored set of open questions in advance but handle each meeting as a fluid conversation rather than a question-and-answer session - this not only builds our own insight but often helps Board members recognise their own areas of strength and development.
Board and Committee observation
Where possible, we observe Board and Committee meetings directly. This adds greatly to our understanding of dynamics, complementing what we hear in the interviews.
Reporting and discussion
We prepare a draft report and review our key findings with the Chair first, before finalising it for the Board. We avoid verbatim quotes to protect confidentiality, and deliberately restrict our main recommendations to three or four themes most likely to have impact. We then facilitate a discussion with the Board to agree next steps.
What your Board can expect
- 01Highlights and reinforces Board capabilities and strengths.
- 02Shows the degree of Board alignment, and where more time may be needed to build consensus.
- 03Increases awareness of team dynamics, engagement and decision-making style.
- 04Assists with future Board and Committee succession planning.
- 05Gives insight into where the Board can best direct its time and attention.
- 06Highlights areas for improvement, in the context of where the organisation is heading next.
The areas every review examines
Strategy
Clarity and alignment on strategic priorities, and how well the Board has added value in shaping them.
Challenges and risks
The Board's role in defining risk appetite, and how effectively risk is assessed and managed.
Values and culture
The Board's involvement in setting and assessing organisational values and culture.
Role
Whether there's a clear, shared understanding of the Board's role and focus areas.
Dynamics
How well the Board operates as a team, and how the Chair leads discussion between meetings.
Engagement
Trust, collaboration and participation, and how individual members contribute and engage.
Structure and composition
Skills, knowledge, experience and diversity across the Board, and the balance of external input.
Succession
How well Board and senior management succession is planned and handled.
Governance
How the Board sets its agenda, organises its processes, and reviews management performance.
FTSE, AIM-listed, private equity and not-for-profit Boards
We conduct Board Effectiveness Reviews for a broad cross-section of organisations - from complex, multi-national FTSE 50 companies to AIM-listed, privately owned, private equity-backed and not-for-profit organisations - including Aviva, Sainsbury's, Experian, Shawbrook, Sage, RELX, Vodafone, Rolls Royce, Taylor Wimpey, Quilter and Evelyn Partners, among many others.
Founded by Elaine Sullivan and Lorna Parker
SP Board Partners was founded by Elaine Sullivan and Lorna Parker, who have been conducting Board Effectiveness Reviews together for over 15 years, formerly as the Manchester Square Partners (MSP) Board Effectiveness Review practice.
Manchester Square Partners no longer conducts Board Effectiveness Reviews, and now refers this work to SP Board Partners - so if you're looking for the team who previously carried out your Board's review at MSP, you'll find us here.