Governance Institute calls for board skills renewal
Released by Governance Institute of Australia today, the report Driving the digital revolution: A guide for boards found 21% of organisations do not have a digital transformation underway, and more than half the respondents have few, if any, directors with technology skills as part of their core skill set.
Despite a rapid acceleration in the use of technology caused by the pandemic, many leaders remain under-skilled and struggling to keep up with a fast-changing digital landscape, a new report has found.
Of those with no digital transformation underway, 40% said it was not a priority and 25% say it’s because they don’t have the required skills.
Governance Institute Chair Pauline Vamos said boards and senior managers need to prioritise digital as a matter of urgency or risk their organisation becoming obsolete.
“While it’s great to see many organisations are on track with their digital transformation, a significant number clearly are not and this is concerning,” Ms Vamos said.
The report’s confirmation of a skills shortage has drawn a line in the sand on the need for a board skills renewal, Ms Vamos said.
“Governance Institute is calling on organisations to seriously consider some significant board renewal in order to fill the digital skills gap.
“As a director, you don’t need to be a tech expert, but you need to understand enough to ensure you are part of the conversations that matter.”
Key findings include:
- 41% say less than a quarter of their board members have technology skills as part of their core skill set, and 13% have no directors with digital skills
- 21% of respondents have no digital transformation underway at their organisation
- Only 33% say their digital transformation involves strategic innovation and adaptation
- 46% rate their organisation average or poor when it comes to data management, an element considered crucial for an effective digital transformation
- 93% say the board should be involved in technology issues but 34% say their board is not dealing competently with tech issues. 47% say this is due to a lack of tech skills and education among board members
- The top technology risks to organisations are cyber security and cyber-attacks (62%), then data governance (49%) and staff technology skills/ knowledge (48%) – respondents could select multiple options.
The report’s findings are based on a survey of 481 CEOs/ C-suite executives, non-executive directors, and senior governance and risk professionals, as well as a working group of digital experts including NSW’s Chief Data Scientist, Ian Oppermann.
