Plenary Session: Hot Topics for Boards in 2017

Corporate boards face ever-changing challenges, and this opening session offers practical advice about some of the most contentious issues likely to face boards in 2017. How should directors respond to threats of shareholder activism? When and how should corporations get involved in social policy debates, such as immigration reform and gender-specific facilities? How should directors respond to calls for greater diversity in the boardroom and throughout the enterprise? What are best practices when considering CEO succession? Do say-on-pay proposals make a difference, and how should boards react to negative votes? Does the ISS compensation model hurt shareholders, and, if so, how can boards respond? The number of publicly traded firms has dropped by almost half since 1996. What has caused this decline, and what, if anything, should be done to reverse the trend?