Emma Coombe

So, Ty, welcome back to the Leadership Lounge.

Ty, we know that many CEOs struggle with deciding how transparent they need to be with their board.

That point I was just making.

Could you talk us through some examples from your book about how some CEOs have navigated this?

Ty, your point on candor is so important, but it can be so hard knowing what to share and when.

And of course, in public companies, for example, they might meet monthly.

In the US, they might meet quarterly.

And so taking your board on a journey, picking up where you left off and making that narrative really clear is even more important.

And of course, when you do surface an issue, pairing it with your plan builds a huge amount of confidence and is so important.

I'd like to move now to speak about conflict.

Even in a strong CEO board relationship, there will inevitably be moments of tension or misalignment.

In fact, in our research, 63% of new CEOs told us they had experienced a significant conflict with their respective boards in their first 12 months.

Gosh, that really is quite a high number and challenging for new CEOs to work through that.

So Ty, clearly the relationship isn't always plain sailing.

What do you often see as the main source of tension for new CEOs and their board?

That's such a difficult situation to find yourself in, Ty.

And these transitions are always hard, but probably none more so than when your predecessor is back on the board and is judging everything, really having their own homework marked by their successor.

And ultimately, as a new CEO, you have been given a mandate to lead and drive change.

And so all board directors leaning into making that dynamic work becomes even more important.

Rusty, we'd like to turn back to you now.