BDO in the Boardroom

Key Takeaways: • Sustainability is the “maturing” of ESG factors crossing over from government regulation to voluntary corporate reporting to becoming commonplace within organizations. • Sustainability has moved across the threshold into mainstream global commerce as investors understand that issues of sustainability have financial implications and dictate risks/opportunities that companies have f...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Jason Brooks , a Managing Director and BDO’s Compensation Consulting Practice Leader, to highlight key planning considerations for compensation committee directors as we rapidly approach the end of 2021 and enter 2022. Key Takeaways: Compensation committees are encouraged to take a current inventory of company needs in rela...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Vanessa Teitelbaum , Senior Director of Professional Practice at the Center for Audit Quality (CAQ), to discuss the critical role audit committees play in the integrity of capital markets and how transparent disclosures about their oversight practices can provide significant value in the protection of investors. Key Takeawa...

Join BDO Tax Partner and Tax Risk Services National Leader Michael Williams as he sits down with James Egert , BDO in the U.K. partner and leader of its Tax Assurance and Risk Management practice, to discuss managing tax risk and why this topic is increasingly appearing on board agendas. James’ perspective from the more legislatively regulated U.K. helps inform what makes managing tax risk importa...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Patrick Gadson , Partner –Shareholder Activism and Mergers and Acquisitions at Vinson & Elkins, to discuss defense strategies for boards and management teams to consider when challenged by activist shareholders. Key Takeaways: Boards of companies (all sizes) that are underperforming need to truly understand BOTH economi...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Cathy Moy , BDO Chief People Officer, to discuss company culture as a business imperative and the reasoning why culture must be center stage for boards as companies reposition their businesses and focus on growth in 2021 and beyond. From Cathy’s unique vantage point, she has seen firsthand how a company’s investment in its...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Melissa Means , Managing Director at Pearl Meyer, to talk about how today’s board directors are navigating critical compensation questions for leaders as companies emerge from COVID and face increasing attention and scrutiny related to both financial and nonfinancial strategic decision-making and performance impacts to thei...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Sarah Feingold , Co-Founder of The Fourth Floor to discuss corporate governance considerations in the start-up world and what has driven her passion for helping connect diverse individuals to the boardroom. Key Takeaways: Never too early for good governance: Can be the “rocket fuel” for a company’s trajectory A diverse boar...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Demetrios Frangiskatos , Assurance Northeast Regional Managing Partner, to discuss the frenzy of SPAC and resulting De-SPAC transactions and in particular, considerations that board members should be thinking about if thinking of or selected to be affiliated with the acquirors or acquirees. Key Takeaways: Good governance at...

Join Amy Rojik, director of BDO’s Center for Governance as she shares some timely considerations for directors to consider with respect to board composition refreshment strategies. Key Takeaways Board composition, succession and refreshment planning should be treated as a priority and normal part of oversight responsibilities Refreshment is underscored by having board members recognize that board...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Yelena Barychev, Corporate Governance and Securities Compliance attorney, to discuss the proliferation of voluntary disclosures being produced by public companies, the increasing attention by regulators and considerations for how boards are to respond in the best interests of their stakeholders. Key Takeaways Voluntary disc...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Karen Schuler, BDO Principal and Leader within our Governance Risk and Compliance group, to discuss how boards’ oversight of data governance within their organizations is changing to meet the opportunities and risk in the rapidly evolving digital space in which organizations are conducting their business. Key Takeaways Boar...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik and Courteney Keatinge, Senior Director of Glass Lewis’ Environmental Social Governance (ESG) Research, as they highlight several significant considerations from a proxy advisor’s perspective for boards and management teams to think about ahead of 2021 annual shareholder meetings. Key Takeaways Anticipate shareholder meeting agendas to be extens...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik and Ryan Hourihan, a principal and certified executive compensation professional at Pearl Meyer, as they highlight several key considerations for directors and management teams as they factor in compensation strategies and performance plans in the upcoming cycle and respond to shareholder questions during annual meetings. Key Takeaways Increased...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik and Tom Conaghan, a partner and the Co-Head of McDermott Will & Emory’s Capital Markets and Public Companies Group, as they highlight several key considerations for upcoming shareholder meetings for directors and management teams from the perspectives of institutional investors and regulators. Key Takeaways Institutional investors and regula...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Cynthia Clark, Executive Director of the Harold S. Geneen Institute of Governance and independent board member, to discuss how the ability to voice values can change behavior and drive better decision-making in the boardroom. Key Takeaways The majority of board members know what is right when faced with an ethical challenge...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Board of Director Gloria Cordes Larson, to share thoughts on top of mind discussion points for boards on their companies activities around environmental social governance (ESG). Key Takeaways Recent events continue to drive significant focus, particularly on the social impacts and risks representing the “S” in ESG ESG is mo...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she discusses what may be in store for corporate tax reform under President Biden’s administration with Todd Simmens, one of BDO’s National Tax Partners. Key Takeaways Talking points indicate President Biden is in favor of scaling back provisions put forth by the prior administration Key corporate tax anticipated changes include: increasing t...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she discusses drivers of audit quality underlying high quality financial reporting that audit committees, management and users of financial statements can trust in with the leaders of BDO Assurance and Audit practices Christopher Tower and Phillip Austin. Key Takeaways Audit committees are encouraged to understand how their auditors define au...

Join BDO's Terry Adamson as he sits down with Robin Ferracone to discuss the expanding responsibilities that compensation committees are taking on. Robin is the founder and CEO of Farient Advisors and Chair of the Compensation Committee at Trupanion, Inc., (NASDQ: TRUP). Key Takeaways The role of the compensation committee is continuing to expand requiring oversight needs to clearly define and inc...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she discusses the challenges and considerations boards face in navigating a SEC 10A investigation with Seth Friedman , Partner with McDermott, Will & Emery and Christopher Tower , BDO’s National Assurance Managing Partner Audit Quality and Professional Practice. Key Takeaways The audit committee and the auditor have very clear, specific a...

To put a damper on hacker activities as we all continue to get comfortable in working remotely, some common sense advice from seasoned tech executive and public company board member Nora Denzel to help protect you, your colleagues and your company’s reputation when accessing and sharing sensitive information. Re-boot your routers regularly Question which email you use Turn off listening and camera...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she discusses why and how boards are turning their focus to the “S” in ESG with Nora Denzel , a seasoned Silicon Valley technology executive and dynamic public company board of director at AMD, Ericsson, NortonLifeLock and SUSE Linux. Key Takeaways “S” is not just about shareholders – it is about the health and well-being of all of your stake...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she sits down with Trish Oelrich , seasoned independent board member, to discuss how boards are helping make corporate initiatives focused around diversity, equity & inclusion successful and how board self-assessments and refreshment efforts are further lending both support to DE&I and providing broader protections for the company.&nb...

Join BDO's Center for Corporate Governance Amy Rojik as she discusses transformative impacts on corporate governance within the consumer products and retail industries with Anddria Clack-Rogers Varnado , Vice President, Head of Strategy & Business Development for Macy’s and Board of Director for Umpqua Bank (NASDAQ: UMPQ). Key Takeaways Trends for retail and consumer products industries are cu...