Dambisa Moyo is an economist and author, known for her analysis of macroeconomics and global affairs. She serves on the boards of Chevron Corporation, Condé Nast and the 3M Company. Dambisa worked for two years at the World Bank and eight years at Goldman Sachs before becoming an author and international public speaker. She has written four New York Times bestselling books. She is a pre-eminent thinker, who influences key decision-makers in strategic investment and public policy. She is respected for her unique perspectives, her balance of contrarian thinking with measured judgment, and her ability to turn economic insight into investible ideas.

KEY TAKE-AWAY
  • Good boards are the boards that do the bare minimum.
  • An effective board must avoid over concentration on the here-and-now to the detriment of long-term evolution and strategy.“Most importantly and most specifically boards are there to make sure that the marginal dollar is being put to work in a way that will generate higher returns over the long term”. Board’s need unflinching focus on successful capital allocation.
  • This is not to say that effective boards are uninterested in short term but rather that they should be consistently thinking about what the world will look like after the immediate moment in time has passed.
  • The deglobalization trend of course pre-dated the pandemic, but it is set to continue and get more complex in all its dimensions. Many companies were not taking this sufficiently into account – this is now no longer an option but a necessity. In the fractured and challenging world of the 21st century, there is a need to de-prioritize cost and re-prioritize reliance and resilience.
  • In response, boards need to develop a broader holistic ‘joined-up’ perspective. This can be achieved by a greater diversity of outlook and origin of board members. Seeking out talent amongst minorities not for their race or their identity but for the wider perspective they bring as an antidote to group think at board level.
  • De-centralizing board power and affording local, country-level, boards the power to allocate capital is also a potential response – but not one that is as yet not very widespread.
  • The part played by gender parity at board level in the overall success of a company is still up for debate but what is not is that those women serving today at board level “are still gold passing as silver”.
  • Stakeholder versus shareholder primacy has entered new territory and boards are already allocating the funding and focusing the operational priorities to reflect the demands of ESG.  One unforeseen and potentially worrying consequence is that many companies are de-listing to free themselves from ESG requirements.
  • On climate change there is still insufficient 360° engagement. Boards should be seeking more interaction with ‘other’ sectors like the scientific community, academia and civil society.