The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has published its 2012 Report on Board Effectiveness. It sets out the progress made since the ABI’s first report last year and highlights best practice in diversity, succession planning and the use of external board evaluation.
Based on its analysis of FTSE 350 annual reports and a survey of FTSE 350 company secretaries, the ABI reports that:
- Board diversity is improving, with the number of women being appointed having increased since the last report, and the number of women on the boards of FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 companies having also risen. However, the lack of women executives in the boardroom remains a key concern for shareholders.
- Disclosure by companies on succession planning continues to be minimal and is expressed in boilerplate language.
- Whilst the number of companies conducting external evaluation is increasing, companies are concerned about the lack of experience, credibility and independence of the available practitioners.
The report makes a number of recommendations in relation to each of these areas. It also includes a review of the role of chairman, based on interviews which the ABI conducted with a range of FTSE 300 chairmen.
A copy of the report is available here.