Recruiters almost exclusively consider former and current CEOs as serious board candidates... 

Fortune Magazine (9/30/14)

 

This is all wrong. Let's consider the kinds of people that belong on a BoD, and how and where to find them. 

 

We know who doesn't belong: 

• Old actors, the architect for the company offices, and the headmaster of the CEO's kids' school, as at Disney
• The retired CEO (who needs or wants him around"? it's mostly "him", too)
• The current CEO, as we have argued elsewhere. 

Ok then, who should activist investors want on a BoD? How do we find these individuals? If we look critically at the desired traits, we arrive quickly at portfolio managers themselves, or people like them. 

 

We analyze why in a current blog post. 

You can find other useful resources at the TAI website, including our research on "Effective Activism, on the Cheap", our new resource guide on activist investing data sources, our white paper with the basics on activist investing, and our new guides on exempt solicitation, consent solicitation, and special shareholder meetings. 

For further information, please contact:

Michael R. Levin
m.levin@theactivistinvestor.com
847.830.1479