The Benefits of Advisory Boards

Advisory boards can be extremely useful to many organizations, in both the private and the not-for-profit sectors.

In many companies it is easy to get trapped into simply managing the status quo. It is not uncommon for many Small to Medium Enterprises ("SMEs") and family-owned businesses, in particular, to fall into the trap of "we've always done it this way - why should we change?"

An experienced advisory board member, however, can often see risks and opportunities in the market place that are sometimes overlooked by the executive management. This is because Advisory board members are not focused on the day-to-day running of the business. They can provide a different and useful independent perspective, focusing on strategy not operations.

The role of the advisory board can be particularly important when the Chairman or Chief Executive Officer of a company is especially entrepreneurial or forceful, providing a counterbalance that ensures shareholders' interests remain protected.

In other companies there could be the opposite problem, inertia. Here the advisory board's job is to inject some entrepreneurial flair, international connections or dynamism to a board that functions well day-to-day but which requires added drive to achieve a major business change.

Some organizations require advisory boards to see them through a corporate transition such as a change in ownership, merger or acquisition. The advisory board members may bring highly specialized knowledge invaluable to a company going through a flotation, relocation, capital investment program, new product introduction or strategic alliance.

At the most fundamental level, an advisor might just be brought in to fill a temporary shortage of in-house qualified directors.

To help your organization enhance its performance by finding the right advisory board member you can view our list of registered candidates. If you have not already done so, you can register here.