Harvard Business Review Board Member's Handbook

4. Engage but Don’t Overstep

When you join a board, you assume a duty to safeguard and advance the company’s performance and well-being. The fiduciary obligations of directors of publicly traded companies focus on optimizing their total shareholder value. For private companies, they may focus on growth and going public, and for nonprofit organizations, they center on achieving the organization’s purpose and mission. Though varied, these obligations all require that their directors recognize when to monitor management, when to collaborate with management, and when to take the lead from management. Just as importantly, they call for knowing when not to overreach—when to refrain from encroaching on the rightful domain of executives.¹

To clarify ...