In the time of Covid-19, forecasting the future is difficult however Korn Ferry asked 28 Chairs of ASX 100 companies, and leaders with a stake in corporate governance, to share their reflections on the challenges boards will face in the next five years, for our new report; The Chair of the Future – Towards 2025. It is clear that Chairs and the boards they lead face challenging headwinds.

While the Chairs we interviewed could not with certainty consider the specifics of market forces they expect their companies to face in the next five years, the long-term impact of Covid-19 will be keenly felt and will influence the composition of boards and the attributes of the Chairs who lead them. It is clear that boards require a strong leader who thrives in an ambiguous environment; one who possesses a learning mindset, resilience, agility, high EQ, courage and curiosity.

Perhaps in 2025, when we look back at 2020 and reflect on the companies that not only survived the crisis but set in train strategies that served them in the years that followed, we will do so through the lens of resilience and agility. For it is these traits, which are stronger together, that will mark the performance of the Chairs of today, and their fellow directors and executive leaders, as they guide their companies into an uncertain future.

Reflections from Chairs on the impact of COVID-19 on boards: 2020-2025

Source: The Chair of the Future – Towards 2025