2021 Directors’ alert: A new era of board stewardship begins

For many boards of directors, 2020 has been the year in which their world was fundamentally transformed. Traditional topics of conversation like profits, margins, and cost structure are making room for more far reaching ones, like workplace health and  safety, how to respond to the pandemic, the search for climate change. Given limited time and resources, how are directors responding to all this?

The 2021 directors’ alert series features a series of articles and interviews with some of the most thoughtful directors representing a diverse range of industries and sectors. In this first edition, Deloitte directors’ alert: A new era of board stewardship begins, these global directors we interviewed are:

• Mr. Barry Lawson Williams is a director at Sutter Health Corp. He is a retired managing general partner of Williams Pacific Ventures, Inc., and formerly served as a director on 14 boards.
• Mr. Anthony Wu is an INED and chairman of China Resources Medical Holdings Company Ltd., and INED of Guangdong Investment Ltd., China Taiping Insurance Holdings Company Ltd., and etc. He was formerly the chairman of the Hong Kong Hospital Authority, and INED of Fidelity Funds and Agricultural Bank of China Ltd.
• Ms. Rose McKinney-James directed the Department of Business and Industry, Nevada's largest state agency. She is the former CEO of CSTRR, a solar and renewable energy company, and a registered lobbyist with the Nevada Legislature.
• Mr. Gordon McKellar Cairns is the former CEO of Lion Nathan and now serves as chairman of Woolworths Group Ltd. And as a nonexecutive director of Macquarie Group Ltd. and World Education.

They shared their thoughts on how the time is now to address climate change in the boardroom, the impact of the pandemic in business strategy and the role digitalization and innovation will play in the recovery process—and more. 

Please click here to download the full English report.

2021 Directors’ Alert will look a bit different. We will publish three editions of the Alert. Deloitte China Center for Corporate Governance will translate the 2^nd and 3^rd edition as well, and publish in March and April. Please stay tuned.

Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Selina Zhao or Susie Wang.