The request for advice
In which a partner from The Board of Directors talks about a specific assignment and the chosen approach.
Hélène Vletter-Van Dort: “Recently, a commissioner asked me for advice because he was asked to join the Supervisory Board of an organization of liberal professionals. A supervisory board at such an organization requires extra attention because it is somewhat different from a supervisory role at, for example, a production company.”
“As a supervisory director at an organization with a partner model — for example a large law firm or an accounting firm — you have to ask yourself extra carefully what your contribution as a supervisory director can be. In such a partner model, you often have different powers as a supervisor, for example, the Supervisory Board or Supervisory Board cannot fire partners, even if you think that a partner is really underperforming. That can cause frustration.”
“Ultimately, it's about the respect with which you, as a commissioner, are approached by the organization and the contribution they expect from you. As a council, are you a mandatory song or can you make it exciting? Can you contribute to how central management is appointed — or is that solely up to the partners? That makes a big difference. Developing the ESG agenda is also a matter of attention in this regard. Who sets the targets, how do you ensure that the targets are reached and how can you contribute to those goals as a commissioner?”
“If you are asked such a question, you should carefully consider why you would want it and why you should not want it. Make a list of arguments for and against. It is important that you get detailed information in advance, more than you might be used to, about the values of the company and, above all, about how much you can intervene to safeguard those values.”
“Ultimately, it's about the respect with which you, as a commissioner, are approached by the organization and the contribution they expect from you.”
“A popular description for outlining the relationship between Supervisory Board and Supervisory Board is the WOK model. In this model, the tasks of the council are summarized as those of Employer, Supervisor and Sounding Board. In organizations of liberal professionals, the 'W' has hardly been developed and that requires a focus on the other two greats. Do you expect to be able to fill the roles of supervisor — that is, in fact, the supervisory role — and sounding board properly? Can I get enough satisfaction from that to accept that role? We regularly advise on these types of questions, and successfully.”
Three relevant questions
In which a partner from The Board of Directors answers three questions about current trends in the business labor market.
How important is the top management of companies as a collective?
Inge Brakman: “The collaboration at the top sets the tone for cooperation in the company. Working from the collective's point of view is therefore decisive for the success of the company. In managing the organizations, I see an increasing need for collective governance. Traditionally, people often manage from silos of responsibility. Everyone has their own craft — that's so clear. The chairman is then, simply put, always having dinner with the relations, the operational manager turns the lights on and off again, and the third would then be the innovative thinker, walking off the plane from all the conferences. However, many business processes — especially since the perhaps biggest business megatrend, digitization — require a fluid approach, for the 'overflow' of responsibilities between people in the leadership team.”
What does such collective decision-making look like?
Inge Brakman: “What is important, even in the public-private sphere, is that, as a director, you have to take into account an increasingly complex package of topics and developments. That requires two things. First, for 'headspace' within the Executive Board, for space to oversee the major movements in their interrelation and in their effects on the policy that the team formulates. Make serious time for that: at least one morning a week without appointments. Read, talk, get inspired, think, analyze. Make space to discover and recognize connections, to respond to megatrends such as disruption through AI and digitization and ESG issues. And secondly, all these developments require an integrated approach and shared responsibility. Many themes now require establishing values that are shared by the entire team. This requires serious, in-depth conversations about such values. How are you going to arrange that?”
” Seriously create time for that: at least one morning a week without appointments.”
And? how are you going to arrange that?
Inge Brakman: “Working closer as a team requires an open way of working together: wanting and being able to understand each other well, really understanding each other.” “Suppose the company wants to work in a more data-driven way. Then there is also a substantive, policy side to this. This is about supporting hardcore production or services throughout the company. That goes across all portfolios, from legal matters to communication and production. Complex, strategic policy decisions require a shared vision in the boardroom. This therefore also requires space for regular discussions across the board, where islands no longer exist but complex themes are highlighted from different points of view. And as soon as the management team becomes more important as a team, there is also a need for better coordination, for more attention from the human side of such a team. How do you get in touch with each other? So how do you work together most effectively? How do you enthuse each other. We regularly coach on exactly that question: how do you turn a group of people into a real team.”
Sources of inspiration
In which a partner of The Board of Directors shares sources of knowledge that inspire him or her.
Dries van der Vossen: “Last Sunday, I rode with the acclaimed Gooische cycling club Moeke Spijkstra, at wind force six, with outliers of eight, across the beach from Egmond to Wijk aan Zee and back. A narrow beach, soft sand. Then you hear the sea, the wind. That gives me a blissful zen feeling. If you ask me, the three basic parts of men and sports happiness are: forbearance, companionship and nice stuff. There are now a number of bicycles in my garage, all black, all equipped with top quality parts.”
“The mystique of the race, that's something... I've been cycling for twelve years now, and I've gone through the cycle that every cyclist goes through. Started on the wrong bike, wrong equipment, you renounce, you can't sit in pain. After three months, you will discover that there is a cycling bible, by an illustrious British cycling company Velominati: 'The Rules'. Rule nine: you always go. I just mean.”
“With members of 'Moeke Spijkstra' — which has expanded to a group of 300 men in recent years — we ride serious races. The Tour of Flanders, the Amstel Gold Race. In Flanders, on Saturday, you bump over the same cobblestones that Van der Poel drives over the day later. The first time, I thought soon after the start: what am I doing? And then the cobbles were yet to come. But when you cross the line in Oudenaarde... That's pure enjoyment.”
“About that preparation: that first time, it mainly consisted of visiting the High Mass museum three times in a row, in Oudenaarde, a kind of church for cycling, where the old giants of the sport were having lunch before the race. I was staring at that like a child.”
“The result of that blissful sacrifice is focus and companionship. The most beautiful friendships have blossomed on the saddle. And always know: even in business, being close to your employees helps you through dark periods.”
The world outside
In which a partner from The Board Room provides some personal suggestions that help make life even more beautiful.
Jan Berent Heukensfeldt Jansen: “A monument to sacred wonder: Artis. As an Amsterdam family, we had a family subscription. Although I left the city at sixteen, when my children moved back to live there, I rediscovered the zoo — through my grandchildren. You can experience the city through shops, cafes, or via the zoo. Then I prefer that wonderful mix of flora and fauna, all those forms of life that intrigue and make happy, especially the small citizens of the world. I want everyone to be carried away by your grandchild, to see life's small and big wonders again through their eyes. I think that's rich.”
