For the greater good

My buddy Robert is a proven CEO, an amateur historian, and keenly concerned about the political environment. Over lunch, he was lamenting that what's missing from today's political rancor is a sense that the candidates are really interested in the 'greater good' for us all. Instead, each seem to be archly tuned to their own interests and are unyielding in their approach to others.

Sadly, sometimes I get the same feeling on boards where members, with good intent to execute their fiduciary duties, are overly concerned with protecting their own interests. Without balance, a board culture can rapidly devolve so much so, that members lose site of what's really building value for shareholders. Moreover, it places the CEO in a can't win position, sapping passion and obscuring the Company's direction....looking after the greater good would have been a good New Year's resolution; it fits for Valentine's Day too.