The Better Boards Podcast Series

• Can AI make better business decisions?

  Send us a textIn this episode of the Better Boards Podcast, Professor Katja Langenbucher explores how boards can embrace AI to future-proof their decision-making.Dr. Sabine Dembkowski speaks with Katja, a law professor at Goethe-University in Frankfurt and affiliated with SciencesPo, Paris. She serves on the supervisory boards of BaFin and IEP and brings extensive boardroom and academic experience.Making Better Judgements: Why Boards Must Embrace AIAI is rapidly reshaping industries—from pharmaceuticals to finance—and boards can no longer afford to stand still. Katja outlines why boards must move past hesitation and actively integrate AI into their processes.She explains how leading organisations embed AI into strategy, what this means under the business judgment rule, and why AI should challenge—not replace—human insight.AI Isn’t a Trend—It’s Becoming a Legal ExpectationAI may still seem opaque to some directors—but that view is increasingly out of step with governance expectations. In jurisdictions applying the business judgment rule, directors must demonstrate informed, reasonable decision-making. AI is becoming part of that expectation.“Very soon, you cannot claim to be well-informed without consulting an AI.”Boards have long leaned on expert input for board evaluations and strategic oversight. Going forward, AI must be part of that toolkit—or boards risk falling short of legal standards.From Coffee Chains to Capital Markets: The Real-World Power of AIKatja cites practical use cases—like how Starbucks applies AI to optimise store locations using behavioural, geographic, and competitor data.“You can use AI to identify an M&A target, spot a hostile takeover risk, or even test how markets might respond to your messaging.”Yet, she observes that AI is still rarely referenced in board evaluations or agendas, despite its ability to surface risks, run scenario models, and sharpen decision-making.The New Role of Company SecretariesCompany secretaries are ideally placed to help boards adopt AI meaningfully. Katja is clear: directors don’t need to code—they need to ask better questions.“Nobody is asking directors to code—but boards must ask the right questions.”Understanding a company’s proprietary data and strategic priorities is a governance task. AI experts deliver the tools, but boards must frame the questions.Challenging Groupthink and Elevating DebateGroupthink continues to undermine board effectiveness. Katja shares a compelling example of using AI to simulate press responses—ranging from neutral to harsh—on a sensitive issue.“Seeing a mock ‘nasty article’ on the big screen challenged the entire board’s thinking.”Used this way, AI becomes a catalyst for challenge and debate, broadening the board’s perspective.AI as Induction, Humans as InterpretationAI and human judgment are not competing forces—they are complementary. AI finds patterns. Humans interpret them.“A good strategic decision is always a combination of AI and human thinking.”Board evaluation frameworks must reflect this dual approach. AI accelerates insight; humans weigh impact.Three Key TakeawaysDon’t Be Late to the Party - AI is fast becoming a market standard. Boards that delay its adoption risk strategic, legal, and reputational disadvantage.Blend AI with Human Judgment - Strategic decisions should integrate the pattern-finding power of AI with the contextual understanding of human directors.Use the AI That Suits Your Board - Every corporation has a unique data pool. Boards must define the questions AI should answer—and then select tools that match their specific needs.

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• Boards - What do capital markets think of them? The unfiltered perspective of a credit analyst

  Send us a textIn an era marked by rapid change, technological disruption, geopolitical uncertainty, and economic volatility, understanding how analysts perceive boards is more important than ever. We turned to an analyst who operates independently of major financial institutions for a truly candid perspective.In this episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series, Dr Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards, speaks with Anke Richter, a seasoned credit analyst and strategist with nearly 30 years of experience in the bond markets. Based in London, Anke has held positions at JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, and Moody’s, and brings a unique vantage point shaped by her work on both the buy-side and sell-side, as well as in a rating agency. She holds both the CFA Charter and CIMA accountancy qualification.A Two-Step Approach to Company AnalysisAccording to Anke, the fundamentals of analysing a company haven’t changed: “What you do when analysing a company is always the same.”Step one involves scrutinising the company’s fundamentals—numbers, valuations, and performance indicators. Step two involves examining red flags in leadership or governance. Common issues include overly dominant founders in small firms or boards where everyone shares the same surname, particularly in family-run conglomerates in emerging markets.Anke notes that although she doesn’t always request formal board evaluations, she views them as a missed opportunity for many firms. Proper board assessments and clear investor communication allow companies to spotlight their governance strengths and strategic priorities.Bridging the Knowledge Gap Between Boards and InvestorsAnke frequently observes significant knowledge gaps in how boards interact with capital markets. “We always find that people are sometimes not aware of how certain things are done or how things are perceived.”Lack of familiarity with investor expectations can seriously handicap a company’s position. To mitigate this, Anke advocates for including individuals with capital markets expertise on the board. This experience ensures the board understands key market dynamics and investor sentiment.Fixing Investor Relations: Easier Than You ThinkInvestor relations, Anke believes, is an area where companies can quickly improve. “This is something you can, as a company, very easily fix.”Improvements don’t require massive budgets. What’s often lacking is not money but human resources and awareness. Clear communication, a well-maintained website, an accessible IR team, and informative roadshows are foundational but frequently overlooked.Anke also points out two critical missteps:1. Inconsistent messaging between equity and debt stakeholders—this discrepancy doesn’t go unnoticed.2. Combative attitudes from executives during investor meetings can irreparably harm trust.Beyond the Numbers: The Human ElementAnke acknowledges that while financial metrics are clear-cut, evaluating leadership is far more nuanced. “If I have an opportunity, I always want to meet management, but one also has to be realistic about whether you can assess whether they are good at running the company.”Good marketing can mask weak fundamentals, and vice versa. Successful investor relations require a balance: numbers must align with consistent messaging and credible leadership behaviour.Top 3 Takeaways for Effective Boards1. Include Capital Markets Experience: Ensure that at least one board member brings direct market experience to guide strategy and communication.2. Maintain Message Consistency: Align messaging for equity and debt investors. Mismatched narratives create confusion and erode trust.3. Perception Is Reality: Be proactive in mana

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• Living with Uncertainty: The Importance of Transformation, Culture, and Talent

  Send us a textIn recent years, transformation skills have become increasingly important at the board level, with culture and talent rising high on the agenda. Yet, there’s still a noticeable absence of HR professionals in the boardroom. Why?In this episode of the Better Boards Podcast Series, Dr. Sabine Dembkowski speaks with Devyani P. Vaishampayan, Remco Chair and NED at Norman Broadbent Plc and Supply Chain Coordination Limited, and Independent NED on the Audit Board of ForvisMazars. Devyani is a Fellow at Chapter Zero and a Board Mentor with Critical Eye. She recently exited her AI Innovation Hub, having spent seven years advising corporates on AI, leadership, and the future of work. Before that, she was a global FTSE 30 CHRO with a 30-year career leading complex, multi-billion-dollar organisations.“It’s still quite rare to find HR professionals on the board… There’s a perception that HR lacks commercial acumen.”Devyani argues that HR leaders can earn their place at the board table by showing strong business insight—understanding financials, customer impact, and strategic goals. This may involve gaining broader experience outside HR or pursuing entrepreneurial ventures to deepen their perspective.“Everyone’s talking about AI, but very few realise how fast the change is happening.”Boards have always dealt with change, but today’s pace, especially with AI and geopolitical shifts, is unprecedented. AI adds speed to transformation and presents both opportunity and risk. Boards must understand their potential while managing risks like bias, data privacy, and employee trust. Devyani warns against overregulation and urges boards to take a more informed, proactive approach.“Boards need to lead more in culture and talent—and be hands-on.”According to Devyani, high-performing boards do three things well:Engage specialists in culture and transformation to support the executive team.Stay connected by engaging directly with employees—some boards spend two days in open forums to better understand workforce sentiment.Lead by example, especially board chairs, who should champion values and culture, not just delegate to the executive team.“Boards need to act as mentors to the executive team.”While some executives prefer boards to be hands-off, Devyani believes informed boards should act as sounding boards. Chairs can match board members with executives for mentoring, creating deeper support systems without overwhelming either side. Cross-committee conversations and subcommittees can also foster this dynamic.Top 3 Takeaways for effective boards:HR leaders—like CFOs—interact closely with boards and should use that access to build trust and position themselves for future board roles.Broaden your skill set. Go beyond your core function to become more valuable and board-ready.Get hands-on with AI. Understand its real-world implications for making informed decisions as a board member.Subscribe to the Better Boards Podcast Series on Apple, Spotify, or Google to stay informed.Want to participate or learn more about Better Boards’ solutions? Contact us at info@better-boards.com.

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• Future proofing the board with AI | Moya Hayhurst, Company Secretary

  Send us a textArtificial intelligence (AI) can revolutionise boardrooms in today's rapidly evolving business landscape. Still, this rapid change threatens to distance boards from the companies they serve if proper care is not taken in implementing both the technology and the governance around it.In this podcast, Dr. Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards, discusses how AI can revolutionise boardrooms with Moya Hayhurst, a Fellow of the Chartered Governance Institute with over 25 years of experience in corporate governance across multiple industries, including mining, financial services, and insurance. “If we go back to the beginning as to why boards were created, they're there to protect and drive the value of companies”Boards have a significant role to play in that discussion, but to lead the debate about future-proofing effectively, boards need to absorb and process a vast amount of information.  “The real value from AI and similar is about integrating into the ethos of the company and the core infrastructure, and whether we like it or not, whether executive boards, executive committees and such acknowledge it, the board is a key component of that”Moya is currently involved in a voluntary project with the Centre for AI in Board Effectiveness (CAIBE), which aims to get boards excited and engaged with AI as a tool for improving their effectiveness and the quality of their conversations. To Moya, in an ideal future state, board members and directors will be able to be more effective by having AI bring forward the data and information they need, when they need it, in easily digestible formats. “Some boards are further along than others"Moya realises this is a leap forward. It wasn't that long ago that boards were reticent to use board pack technology. They wanted their hard copies printed and couriered to wherever they were in the world, whereas now 90% of boards walk into a boardroom with an iPad. It’s an evolution in progress. “Through an interface like AI, you can bring the board back in alignment with the company”To Moya, what AI is surfacing is not that different skills are needed in the boardroom. The boardroom is already full of incredibly skilled people, but those people are struggling with the data coming at them, and thanks to the time it takes to prepare board papers, not all of that data is up to date. Backward-looking reporting is leading to missed opportunities.“AI is a toddler. They are excited, energetic, and bring such amazing potential, but they've got to have guardrails so that they grow up in the right way”Moya understands that boards have concerns about new technology tools and their security, as well as the protection of sensitive information. Fortunately, most organisations have a governance framework in place to strike a balance between responsibility and innovation. She thinks of AI as a toddler loaded with energy and potential but in desperate need of guidance and thoughtful training. The three top takeaways for effective boards from our conversation are:1.      Lean on governance professionals and IT professionals to help you investigate the technology and offer better intelligence for quicker decisions.2.     Don’t be hamstrung by perceived risk. Think through it carefully, and then quantify and manage the risk so that you can empower and engage your directors to really be at the forefront of your industry.3.    You must have a clear plan that understands the risk and governance frameworks of your organisation and its sensitive data, and that ensures your guardrails are in place. 

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• Cutting past the noise on the climate/energy transition | David Harris, Sustainable Finance Strategic Initiatives, London Stock Exchange Group

  Send us a textOver the last decade, climate and sustainability have become more of a focus for boards and sub-committees. However, there is currently a lot of conflicting noise around this agenda. So, there is a lot for boards to digest around this topic, making it an opportune time to take stock of where we are and what boards should consider.In this podcast, Dr. Sabine Dembkowski, Founder and Managing Partner of Better Boards, discusses climate/energy transition with David Harris, who has worked on these topics for over 20 years. He leads sustainable finance strategic initiatives at LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group), having previously led sustainable finance for two of its divisions:  FTSE Russell in its index business, and its Data and Analytics division.“20 years ago, this was regarded as quite a niche area. Today, that picture is completely different. It's one of the top issues for institutional investors.”The data backs him up. In FTSE Russell’s annual survey of global pension funds, they ask if the funds are integrating sustainability issues into their investment strategies. Among the largest and most sophisticated funds, those with over 10 billion dollars in assets under management, 86 per cent do. “Of the different sustainability themes, climate change and energy transition rank in our asset owner survey as being the very top priority.”Data from the International Energy Agency shows in 2024, annual investment into the energy sector was $3 trillion,  $2 that in 2024, annual investment in the energy sector was $3 trillion,  $2 trillion in clean energy, and $1 trillion in fossil fuels. In contrast, around five years ago, they were roughly on par at $1 trillion each. So, David says we are well into a substantial shift in the global economy, and boards and investors need to understand that.“I think there has been some surprise.. from boards at the level of reporting requirements coming at them.”Shifts of this magnitude come with many reporting requirements – requirements that have many boards less than thrilled. Some of the exasperation is at the newness of the requirements, and some is frustration with the scope. David feels this is a legitimate concern, as many boards find that keeping up with reporting can detract from focusing on the most material and relevant issues of running the business. “What's really important here is… sustainability standards are increasingly being set in a way which aligns them with the way companies are used to reporting on financial information.”The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation has set up the International Sustainability Standards Board, which may be familiar to many listeners. It aims to get global sustainability standards set up in a way that aligns with how companies are used to reporting on financial information and in a format that’s easier for the investor community to use. The three top takeaways for effective boards from our conversation are:1.      Don't get lost in all of the reporting regulations. Cut through that and focus on the material issues and what’s right for the business. 2.     Make sure you're engaging your investors, not only the sell-side analysts but also the institutional investors who sit behind them, i.e. the pension funds and sovereign wealth funds, as well as the asset managers and understand their priorities.3.     Build your expertise and lean on the resources available through Chapter Zero and similar networks.  

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