Adapt or Fail!

Conventional approaches to board governance have been unable to keep pace with the momentum of change, as well as the uncertainty and asymmetric competition that characterizes the 21st century. Adapt or Fail! A 5x5 Governance Framework for Boards of Directors provides practical ways boards can lead and accelerate adaptation, even in the face of extreme uncertainty and inevitable adversity. It pulls back the curtain on governance successes and failures. It highlights the critical questions every board should ask and the lessons worth learning if organizations are to successfully adapt.

The book describes the five essential powers common to all boards and explores how to use them. Whether for profit or not, large or small, public or private, all boards must conduct the business of the board itself; set direction and policy; approve key decisions and then prudently delegate; oversee the execution of direction within policy; and verify before trusting.

Written by two governance experts who have lived and breathed these issues, the book shows how boards can embed a systematic and disciplined process of continuous adaptation by detecting signals (external/internal); interpreting those signals; responding through experimentation and innovation; judging the effectiveness of the response; and then adapting as necessary. This is an indispensable resource for board members and trustees in both for-profit and non-profit organizations.