Blog article written by CDN College Awards 2022 Gold Sponsor – AdminControl
Facilitating collaboration and communication is a core component of the board secretary role, especially in the hybrid working age. Managing governance within a statutory environment, alongside the rise of cybersecurity risks, means the remit of the role is increasingly complex.
Facilitators and enablers
The threat of cyber-attacks, data privacy breaches and digital transformation is of huge concern. Board secretaries are integral in driving the implementation of policies and practices that help safeguard corporate reputation and increase efficiency and security. Guiding the board on these critical aspects and how the hybrid approach is impacting the organisation’s people, customers and processes is likely to become more fundamental to the role.
The impact of hybrid working
For board work, hybrid working presents both challenges and opportunities. Ensuring each board member has the tech and documentation they need for a productive meeting is essential for efficient collaboration and discussion. Board secretaries have had to adapt to new ways of working too. Managing virtual meetings isn’t always easy, especially if attendees are based in different locations.
Collating and distributing board documents such as minutes, board packs and financial reports is time-consuming and admin-heavy when most of the attendees are not in the office. Increasingly, the board secretary needs to organise all of these tasks remotely, and yet relying on email is too much of a security risk.
Embracing digital solutions
Digital solutions such as board portals automate the meeting preparation and management process, providing a secure and digital approach that eases the admin burden while saving time and money too. Users can share, review, and digitally sign board papers in a single platform no matter where they are located or what device they are using. As well as removing the need for endless emails and insecure offline communication, there’s the confidence that everyone has the right document at their fingertips.
Technology solutions designed for the needs of board work are a vital tool in responding to the demands of hybrid working – both for the leadership team and the board secretary on whom everyone is relying for an efficient and secure process.
In summary, the evolution of the board secretary role is twofold. It’s about embracing technology solutions to make board work easier in our hybrid working world and it’s about a widening of the job remit spending more time focusing on strategic issues.
