First Nations Governance Advisory Forum launched by the AICD

Thursday, 01 August 2024

    Current

    Under the AICD’s Innovate RAP program, the organisation is committed to improving representation of First Nations people in Australian boardrooms and building a community of First Nations governance leaders. As part of that work, the AICD First Nations Governance Advisory Forum began discussions in June this year. Here, we outline the aims of the forum and acknowledge the members taking part. 


    The AICD First Nations Governance Advisory Forum held its first meeting on 25 June. Its aim is to promote discussion on issues of importance to First Nations directors and provide opportunities for dialogue about governance/practice matters directly affecting First Nations directors and First Nations AICD members. Forum members include:

    • Justin Agale MAICD, AICD First Nations Sector Lead

    • Ian Hamm MAICD, chair Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation and First Nations Foundation, board member AICD and ACNC

    • Brad Welsh GAICD, CEO and MD of Energy Resources of Australia, director at nib Holdings and nib Health Funds

    • Steve Rossingh GAICD, CEO of Miwatj Health

    • Emma Garlett, director First Nations consultancy Garlett Group, an Industry Fellow at the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining at the University of Queensland, board member of the Indigenous Legal Issues Committee

    • Lauren Ganley GAICD, head of Telstra First Nations Strategy and Engagement, member of the AICD’s NT Division Council

    Organisational representatives on the forum include Indigenous Business Australia, the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations (ORIC) and the Australian National University (ANU).

    Agale said the forum will meet twice a year, position itself as a unique voice on First Nations issues in the governance community and develop strategic engagement within the sector. AICD Roundtable events were held earlier this year with First Nations members from different sectors.

    “We hope through the forum to build a network of meaningful strategic partnerships and a community of First Nations governance leaders to guide the development of effective governance,” said Agale. “Through our AICD First Nations Director Scholarship Program, we aim to create and develop a director pipeline to provide for a diverse First Nations community of director-ready people to provide stewardship for organisations both First Nations and non-First Nations.”

    AICD CEO and managing director Mark Rigotti said, “The AICD is conscious we needed to increase our direct engagement with First Nations stakeholders and this forum is one way we are doing that. The formation of the forum is another step on our Reconciliation journey and is consistent with our mission to strengthen society through world-class governance.”

    Responsibilities of the forum include:

    • Identifying issues of relevance to First Nations directors that warrant further AICD attention

    • Providing feedback on AICD activities and issues put to the forum by the AICD

    • Assisting the AICD to formulate, review and comment on policies relevant to the governance of First Nations directors. 

    Expecting the unexpected

    Subversive technology — in the shape of cyber, deep fakes and AI, for example — is the biggest concern for directors preparing for corporate crises of the future. At a recent AICD webinar, more than half of the polled participants rated this well ahead of unexpected regulatory enforcement (16 per cent), while activist shareholders and stakeholders were ranked the lowest concern at three per cent.

    Readiness for a future crisis is key, with the need for rapid decision-making — often with limited information to hand as an event unfolds — necessitating rigorous planning, training and collaboration, said Michelle Lawson MAICD, a non-executive director at the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

    “Effective governance and strategic crisis management planning can not only overcome the challenges, but you can also emerge stronger and even set new industry benchmarks,” said Lawson. “The board’s role is really crucial. While crises can sometimes be unpredictable, it’s the quality of implementing robust crisis management plans, maintaining transparent communication and engaging in those proactive risk management discussions and trials that can significantly influence an organisation’s recovery.”

    Boards need to understand the data being presented to them during crisis planning and must be able to challenge management when need be, said Prudence Bennett GAICD, a partner at Brunswick Group. “Investors are very focused on crises and how a crisis may test the quality of the board,” said Bennett, noting the impact on company value can be enormous. “We’re doing continual research with investors to find out what drives their investment decision-making and the number-one issue is the quality of management and the board. They’re hoping the issue should be able to be managed.”

    Potential impact on brand and reputation is another consideration from an investor perspective because reputational measures are being incorporated in the remuneration determinations that investors vote on annually. The board needs to be across the investor relations function — and have confidence that they have built a sound relationship with their key institutional investors. “The term ‘investor’ is not homogeneous, and it is important to understand that,” said Bennett.

    The crisis landscape is very different and so much broader than in the past. Regarding technology, information that people gather today could be decrypted in the future, and therefore become public knowledge, said Richard Dodsworth AAICD, managing partner at RJD Advisory.

    “The information we once thought was private, using the current sort of encryption technologies, will be broken through the use of quantum computing. That’s a huge risk. From a board director’s perspective, we need to think about working with our vendors and suppliers on using new encryption technologies to be able to fight against the threat of quantum.”

    However, he also noted the danger of the board spending so much time thinking about what might be possible that it detracted from exploring any innovation the business could invest in.

    The panel identified climate change and sustainability, the mental health of employees and the rise of SaaS cloud-based services as potential crisis issues that could be given more attention.

    John Macpherson, a partner at Ashurst Risk Advisory, noted planning was essential to align crisis planning with your risk framework. “Make sure you know who’s responsible for the crisis management plan — and that the board has a defined role,” said Macpherson. “Part of that role is playing devil’s advocate. Poke and prod the testing and know that continuous improvement and culture are really critical.” 

    Access the recording of the Expecting the unexpected: Preparing for the corporate crises of the future webinar and upcoming webinars here

    King’s Birthday Honours

    AICD members recognised in 2024.

    ACT

    Sue Bodell PSM MAICD

    Jane Evans OAM GAICD

    Vidoshi Jana PSM GAICD

    Justin Jones AO CSC RAN GAICD

    NSW

    Peter Agnew AM GAICD

    Penny Browne OAM GAICD

    Robert Kelly AM FAICD

    Lisa Kervin AM GAICD

    Stephen O’Doherty OAM MAICD 

    Nicolette Rubinsztein AM FAICD 

    Annette Ruhotas Morgan AM MAICD 

    Talal Yassine AM FAICD

    QLD

    Ros Curtis AM GAICD

    Elizabeth Kendall AM MAICD 

    Michelle Lees PSM GAICD 

    Glenn McGrath AO GAICD 

    Wendy Waller OAM GAICD

    SA

    Katina D’Onise AM GAICD

    TAS

    Michael Bailey OAM MAICD

    VIC

    Robin Campbell AM MAICD 

    Sherene Devanesen AM GAICD 

    Jo Douglass AO MAICD

    Bob Gartland OAM MAICD 

    Chris Gillies AM FAICD

    Sharon Goldfeld AM MAICD 

    Christopher Hall AM MAICD 

    Mon Hamilton PSM MAICD 

    Chris Hardman AFSM GAICD 

    Denise Heinjus OAM AAICD 

    Anne Kavanagh OAM MAICD 

    Alison Kitchen AM MAICD 

    Jason Loos PSM GAICD

    Robyn McLeod AM FAICD 

    Richard Niessl CSC MAICD 

    Margaret O’Rourke OAM FAICD 

    Kristine Olaris OAM MAICD 

    David Olsson AM GAICD

    Gavin Thompson AFSM AAICD 

    Leonard Vary AM FAICD

    Bill Whitford PSM FAICD

    WA

    Suzanne Ardagh AM FAICD

    Janice Bell AM GAICD

    Asha Bowen OAM GAICD

    Marion Hailes-MacDonald PSM GAICD 

    Lisa Rodgers PSM MAICD

    Peter Rossdeutscher AM FAICD 

    This article first appeared under the headline 'First Nations Governance Advisory Forum’ in the August 2024 issue of Company Director magazine.  

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