Technology assists us with many tasks in one way or another every single day. While technology can be an amazing and valuable tool that helps us in numerous ways, the wrong tools and apps can be incredibly frustrating. Most people think of technology as their best friend or their worst enemy. For board directors where many are at or approaching retirement, technology tends to draw more jeers than cheers.
When board directors are using the right technology, it can increase the pace of their work from a snail's pace to that of a roadrunner. The wrong technology slows the pace of business down, exacerbates mistakes, and opens up dangerous new opportunities for risks. Boards become vulnerable. The right board management governance software assures compliance, solves security issues, and enhances good governance principles. Boards become productive and efficient and are better able to keep pace with today's business practices.
Essentially, the right modern governance tools set the stage for ultimate corporate success and profitability.
The Wrong Technology Creates Board Meeting Inefficiencies
The pace of corporate business is such that board directors can no longer wait for quarterly reports and updates. Corporate business happens in real time. Without the right technology, board directors are left out of the loop and in the dark. Board directors need the ability to stay continually connected and engaged with management and the pulse of their organizations. The wrong tools and apps can hang them up. Routine tasks simply take too long. Manual voting processes, delayed meeting RSVPs and paper processes bog down corporate secretaries. Last-minute agenda changes can increase labor time and other costs greatly. Preparing agendas and board meeting minutes takes a lot of time to complete and get approved with manual processes.Security Is Sorely Lacking in Boardrooms and in Board Processes
Board directors are keenly aware of the high risks of cybercrime. If it hasn't been drilled into them enough, the media continually reminds them by reporting new instances of data breaches. By and large, board directors find IT to be too technical and confusing for them to make good decisions about how to protect the board and the company. Cybercrime is more sophisticated than ever. Hackers are working doggedly around the clock looking for ways to penetrate multiple layers of security to make corporations vulnerable. Nearly everyone now uses email, but once again, the media tells us that using personal and business email accounts and other electronic apps for communication lacks the necessary security to protect confidential board business. Insecure communications also pose a risk of accidentally sending disclosures to the wrong parties with no controls to prevent it. While security is sorely lacking in the technology realm, boards that continue to use dated paper processes can't have the assurance that their important documents are safe. Paper documents may be difficult to find if they're stored in multiple locations, which means that it takes a long time to get the right documents or risk not being able to find them at all. What is worse is that paper is subject to natural disasters such as fire, floods and damage by vermin. Regular computer systems lack the features and security to prevent employees and others from gaining access to confidential information, giving control to all the wrong people.Tech Equipment Is Too Complicated to Use
While many boards need to meet more often because of the pace of the organization's needs, the costs and scheduling can be a nightmare. The travel, food and lodging expenses of bringing in board members from various states or other countries can be quite exorbitant. It can be difficult to quickly find dates that accommodate all directors because of waiting for responses via phone and email. Technical equipment can be complicated to set up and use. Systems may be electronically incompatible with each other. Poor audio or video quality makes for unproductive meetings. Some pieces of boardroom equipment are less secure than other pieces, setting the stage for spreading pesky viruses. If all that isn't bad enough, cybercriminals have been known to hack into boardroom cameras, placing company business at risk.Having the right tools for Modern Governance: Diligent Governance Cloud
The pace and complexity of business requires boards to move away from siloed systems and processes. Modern governance demands one system where board directors can access all board processes using one fully integrated board platform where technology is strongly aligned to the company's specific governance needs. The solution that today's boards need is Governance Cloud by Diligent Corporation. Governance Cloud is a fully integrated suite of modern governance tools that address all board processes and systems within one highly secure electronic platform. Diligent Messenger is a secure electronic communication tool that far surpasses the security of any personal or business email platform. Messenger prevents accidental emails and disclosures. Diligent Boards is a board portal platform that gives board directors access to all board information at any time of day or night and every day of the year. The days of waiting for information are gone forever because directors can get real-time access to information. Technology helps board directors work on a fully mobile basis regardless of how busy they are. With Governance Cloud, directors can grab any electronic device to bring information at their fingertips within seconds. The products within Governance Cloud all have state-of-the-art security. Since all the products are fully integrated, there's no risk of transferring viruses or malware between software solutions and electronic devices. Board administrators have the ability to set up granular controls so that only approved users can access the parts of the system they need. As legal and compliance regulations increase, the secure portal protects board directors from liability concerns. Governance Cloud offers unlimited cloud-based storage that's accessible for board directors at any time. As an industry leader, Governance Cloud was designed to be adaptable to frequent and extensive changes to keep up with the current and future demands of business and governance. Governance Cloud is an modern governance system that supports a full range of governance activities. Most importantly, it's intuitive and easy to use, even for directors who find technology challenging. Governance Cloud doesn't change the board's business. It changes the ways the boards conduct their business. It turns technology problems into technology solutions.![](/-/media/project/diligent/master/au-whitepaper-images/whitepaper-images/a-buyers-guide-to-esg-data-management-software.png?h=511&iar=0&w=765&rev=263be577-e761-4e63-96ef-8ab461f2c7d1&hash=35A71501C65320AF30D85580C75077F4)
Media Highlights
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues have become more complex and multifaceted than ever before. At the same time, ESG continues to ascend on board and leadership agendas.
In this buyer’s guide, we explore what a market-leading ESG solution should look like and highlight the key areas organisations should be prioritising as they embark on their search.