Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein
148 episodes - English - Latest episode: 21 days ago -In-depth interview podcast with leading corporate governance experts, including world-class founders, scholars, board members, executives, investors and more. The content is structured as a long-form conversation to explore not only the latest corporate governance trends, but also to get some personal insights from some of the best and brightest minds behind America's boardrooms.
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Episodes
Abe Friedman: "Investors Don't Care As Much About The Messenger As They Do About The Message."
September 13, 2021 13:22 - 56 minutes - 52 MBIntro. (1:30) - Start of interview. (2:12) - Abe's "origin story". He grew up in L.A and moved up to the Bay Area where he attended Berkeley for college and law school. After law school he went to Seattle and worked in-house for US West Communications (now Qwest Corporation). Back in northern California he joined another telecom before joining the founding team at Glass Lewis in 2003 ("the market was ripe for disruption"). (5:37) - His time as the Global Head of Corporate Governance at B...
Priya Cherian Huskins: On SPACs, D&O Insurance and Federal Forum Charter Provisions.
September 07, 2021 13:22 - 54 minutes - 49.5 MBIntro. (1:24) - Start of interview. (1:54) - Priya's "origin story". She was born in India and grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. She went to Harvard college and studied law at Chicago Law School. After graduation she clerked for Judge Frank Magill (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, in North Dakota). She later joined WSGR as a corporate securities attorney during the dot com boom in Silicon Valley. In 2003, she joined Woodruff Sawyer to specialize in D&O insurance. (5:42) - On ...
Maureen Farrell: "The Cult of We", WeWork, and Startup Governance Shortcomings.
August 23, 2021 13:30 - 53 minutes - 49.2 MBIntro. (1:25) - Start of interview. (2:14) - Maureen's "origin story". (3:00) - Why she focused on WeWork as the subject of her book "The Cult of We" with her WSJ colleague Eliot Brown. She took over the IPO beat at the WSJ in 2016, "when there were almost no IPOs." Tech companies were staying private for longer with a ton of capital flowing into the private markets. That's when she started following high flying unicorns such as Uber, Airbnb, Lyft and WeWork. "But I always heard things t...
Robin Ferracone: "The U.S. Lags Other Regions In Terms of Using Stakeholder Measures in Executive Compensation"
August 05, 2021 13:58 - 47 minutes - 43.4 MBIntro. (1:08) - Start of interview. (1:42) - Robin's "origin story": she grew up in Indiana, "sought warmer weather" so she headed to Duke for college. She later got an MBA at Harvard and started her consulting career at Booz Allen in SF. Five years later she started her own firm, SCA Consulting, focusing on executive compensation and strategy, based out of L.A. She sold that firm to Mercer in 2001, stayed on with the firm until 2007 when she left to start her current firm Farient Advisor...
Christopher Young: "After the Exxon Proxy Fight, Directors Realize That They May Be Taken Out By Sub 1% Shareholders."
July 19, 2021 12:57 - 1 hour - 58.6 MBIntro. (1:40) - Start of interview. (2:08) - Chris's "origin story": he grew up in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, but has spent most of his adult life in NY or outside of DC. He started out as a derivatives trader right out of college. Then he went to law school. After law school, he joined White & Case and later Sullivan & Cromwell to focus on M&A transactions. In the late 1990s (during the "dot com" era), he joined Bear Sterns as an investment banker in the tech group. (7:40) - On his m...
Jared Ellias: "The Elevation of the Board is an Important Trend in the Bankruptcy Process"
July 06, 2021 13:49 - 45 minutes - 42 MBIntro. (1:39) - Start of interview. (2:15) - About UC Hastings and the Center for Business Law [that we are building together!] (5:10) - Jared's "origin story": he grew up in Michigan, attended the U. of Michigan (BA political science) and Columbia Law School (JD). A book on the bankruptcy of Marvel Comics led him to bankruptcy law and practice. After graduation he joined Brown Rudnick in NYC (’07-’11). He later joined academia as a Teaching Fellow and Lecturer in Law in Corporate Govern...
Donna Anderson, Head of Corporate Governance at T. Rowe Price: "This Has Been A Very Surprising Proxy Season"
June 28, 2021 13:55 - 50 minutes - 46.4 MBIntro. (1:30) - Start of interview. (2:14) - Donna's "origin story": She grew up moving a lot since her dad was a Navy pilot. She attended Trinity University (started at 16). After college she worked as a newspaper reporter at a small daily in Washington State and then worked in the PR office for the State Department in Brussels. She later got an MBA at the University of Texas at Austin with the objective of becoming an investment analyst. After graduation she joined Dyer, Robertson & Lam...
Lawrence Cunningham: Quality Shareholders, Governance and Warren Buffett.
June 21, 2021 13:30 - 1 hour - 55.9 MBIntro. (1:32) - Start of interview. (2:10) - Larry's "origin story." He grew up in Wilmington, Delaware ("which explains why I have corporate governance in my blood.") He attended Girard College in Philadelphia, then went to the University of Delaware (BA Economics) and Cardozo School of Law (JD). After graduation he worked as an associate at Cravath for 6 years and then joined academia with Cardozo (10 years) moving later to Boston College Law School. He later switched to George Washingt...
Joe Grundfest: On Capital Markets, Crypto Regulations, Board Diversity & Corporate Electoral Innovation.
June 15, 2021 13:00 - 40 minutes - 36.6 MBIntro. (1:42) - Start of interview. (3:11) - Joe's take on the rise of IPOs and SPACs since 2020. "There is a level where it is all entirely rational." (4:16) - Staying private vs going public in this environment. "In today's world, companies have three alternatives: do another VC round, a SPAC or an IPO." (6:43) - On the fundraising environment: "This is historically unprecedented... due to fiscal and monetary stimulus throughout the U.S. and global economies." "But you have to combin...
Nell Minow: "You Can Get 90% of Governance by Looking at CEO Pay"
May 24, 2021 12:50 - 58 minutes - 53.7 MBIntro. (1:42) - Start of interview. (2:28) - Nell's "origin story." She's the oldest of three girls, including former Harvard Law School Dean and current Professor Martha Minow. Her father, Newton Minow, was the Chairman of the FCC under JFK and authored a famous speech on the "vast wasteland" of TV (that still resonates 60 years later). She was influenced to speak out from an early age when she saw problems. Her ambition was to become a prosecutor but she moved to D.C., where she worked ...
Jon Lukomnik: Moving Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory and the Evolution of Corporate Governance.
April 21, 2021 13:41 - 55 minutes - 50.9 MBIntro. (1:37) - Start of interview (2:19) - Jon's "origin story." He started as a sports journalist, later became press secretary to then NYC Comptroller Jay Goldin. His transition to asset management, founding his firm Sinclair Capital and leading the Investor Responsibility Research Center Institute (IRRCi) (succeeded by the Weinberg Center) focused on ESG and capital market issues. (4:48) - His experience with the NYC pension funds, CII and how he addresses the different "stages of go...
Janine Yancey: "Boards Have To Address Social Issues"
April 12, 2021 13:45 - 54 minutes - 50 MBIntro. (1:12) - Start of interview (1:54) - Janine's "origin story." (2:25) - Her path from law school to plaintiff litigation work, representing and training employers, and the founding of Emtrain. (5:40) - Her thoughts on lawyers transitioning to entrepreneurship, and her personal story with Emtrain: "I had this day job that was pretty directionally consistent with what I wanted to do in a technology aided fashion." "It was a big deal when I quit my day job in 2006 and all of a sudden...
David Curran: "ESG Is A Moving Target Even For The Best Companies"
April 07, 2021 14:29 - 57 minutes - 53 MBIntro. (1:21) - Start of interview (2:07) - David's "origin story." (3:42) - His take on lawyers pursuing "non-traditional" careers. "I think that ESG as a career path is going to explode. This is only the beginning." (5:04) - Paul Weiss' Sustainability & ESG Advisory Practice Group. (9:02) - How did "ESG" become a core topic of corporate governance? "There has been tremendous pressure on organizations to perform better, to be better corporate citizens." "It coalesced gravitationally ...
Amy Borrus: The Council of Institutional Investors' Voice of Corporate Governance.
February 22, 2021 14:30 - 59 minutes - 54.8 MBIntro. (1:22) - Start of interview (2:23) - Amy's "origin story" (3:41) - Her time as a journalist at Businessweek (US, UK and Japan). (5:02) - Her return to the US in 1990, where her last beat was to cover the SEC and corporate governance (including corporate scandals from the early 2000s and SOX). (6:32) - Her start at the Council of Institutional Investors in 2006. (7:52) - The history of CII, founded in 1985 "at a time of corporate takeovers, imperial CEOs and insulated boards of...
Nichol Garzon-Mitchell: Glass Lewis and the Proxy Advisory Landscape.
February 08, 2021 14:30 - 52 minutes - 48.3 MBIntro. (1:16) - Start of interview (2:04) - Nichol's "origin story" (3:48) - Her beginnings with Glass Lewis & Co. in 2004. (4:32) - What is the proxy advisory business? What was the origin of Glass Lewis? Founded by Greg Taxin and Kevin Cameron in 2003. (7:17) - The evolution of the proxy advisory business. "Now we've become more of a trusted partner to institutional investors to navigate all [the corporate governance] issues." (7:51) - The proxy voting management platform "Viewpoin...
Aeisha Mastagni: CalSTRS Corporate Governance Principles and Activist Stewardship.
February 01, 2021 14:30 - 56 minutes - 51.6 MBIntro of episode. (1:18) - Start of interview (1:52) - Aeisha's "origin story" (2:31) - Her beginnings with Salomon Smith Barney and Morgan Stanley in the "dot com" era. (3:40) - Her corporate governance beginnings with CalPERS. (6:50) - How pension funds manage their proxy voting and stewardship. At CalSTRS they manage 9,000+ equities. Role of Proxy Advisors: they help triage proxy voting, allowing to focus on the most relevant issues. (9:17) - She would like to see more competitio...
Peggy Foran: "Corporate Directors Have To Be Their Own Activists"
January 25, 2021 14:00 - 49 minutes - 45.1 MB(1:35) - Start of interview (2:23) - Peggy's "origin story" (3:04) - Her experience at Notre Dame (BA and JD) (4:17) - Her progression from Wall St. law firm work to Mellon Bank, JP Morgan, Pfizer, Sara Lee and Prudential. (6:17) - Dennis Weatherstone (former CEO of JP Morgan) as a catalyst of #corpgov at the bank in the mid-90s. (7:00) - Her move to Pfizer, drawn by Terry Gallagher and Bill Steer focus on #corpgov (pre SOX 2002) (7:50) - The focus on governance in late 1990s - Peter...
Sukhinder Singh Cassidy: "People Want The Experience They Don't Have In Their Day Job."
January 04, 2021 14:30 - 55 minutes - 50.5 MB(1:50) - Start of interview (2:23) - Sukhinder's "origin story" (2:58) - Her start in Silicon Valley in 1997. She characterizes her career as "always building". Junglee - Amazon ('98-99) Yodlee ('99-'03) Google ('03-'09) Accel-Polyvore ('10) Joyus ('11-'17) TheBoardlist ('15-present) Stubhub ('18-'20) (6:50) - Her boardroom experience (J Crew Group, StichFix, TripAdvisor, Ericsson, Urban Outfitters, Upstart...). "Your job is one of influence, and one of bringing specialization - ...
David Chun: "The Demand For New Directors Will Increase Exponentially Over the Next 12-24 Months, and Equilar is Working to Help on the Supply Side."
December 14, 2020 14:43 - 50 minutes - 46.5 MB(1:40) - Start of interview (2:38) - David's "origin story" (4:49) - The founding of Equilar in 2000. The modern "corporate governance" era started after the corporate scandals of the early 2000s (Enron, Tyco, Adelphia, WorldCom, etc.) and the passage of SOX in 2002. "Very few people talked about corporate governance in the 1990s" With this new focus on corporate governance, there was a lot of attention given to exec comp. (9:56) - The Board's role in setting compensation for the CE...
David Chun: "The Demand For New Directors Will Increase Exponentially Over the Next 12-24 Months."
December 14, 2020 14:43 - 50 minutes - 46.5 MB(1:40) - Start of interview (2:38) - David's "origin story" (4:49) - The founding of Equilar in 2000. The modern "corporate governance" era started after the corporate scandals of the early 2000s (Enron, Tyco, Adelphia, WorldCom, etc.) and the passage of SOX in 2002. "Very few people talked about corporate governance in the 1990s" With this new focus on corporate governance, there was a lot of attention given to exec comp. (9:56) - The Board's role in setting compensation for the CE...
David Berger: On Purpose, Dual-Class Stock, LTSE, Board Diversity, SPACs, Shareholder Activism and More.
November 23, 2020 15:14 - 55 minutes - 51.2 MB(1:40) - Start of interview (2:10) - David's "origin story" (3:44) - His start with Wilson Sonsini in 1989. (6:11) - His experience serving as a board member, and why he thinks corporate America has lost out on having lawyers as directors. His for corporate boards have included California Culinary Academy, and currently LTSE. (7:41) - His take on the Long Term Stock Exchange. (9:47) - His thoughts on why companies should list on the LTSE ("the market is wide open"). (11:03) - His ta...
Yumi Narita: Promoting Good Governance from the Comptroller's Office of NYC.
November 16, 2020 14:00 - 57 minutes - 52.5 MB(1:27) - Start of interview (2:59) - Yumi's "origin story" (4:18) - Her start with Barclay's Global Investors (which was later acquired by BlackRock). (4:50) - The lessons she learned working for the Stewardship team at BlackRock (2004-2018) Proxy Voting Group Big change on engagement with companies started after financial crisis (2007-2009). Impact Dodd Frank Act (2010) - Say on Pay. (10:24) - Her experience as Global Head of Corporate Governance at Alliance Bernstein (2018-2019)....
Mason Morfit: "We Can Bring Peripheral Vision to the Boardroom."
October 28, 2020 23:46 - 1 hour - 59.6 MBStart of interview [1:17] Mason's "origin story" [1:58] His start with ValueAct Capital (2001-Present) [2:51] "A lot of what we do at ValueAct is invite ourselves to the dinner party." The history of ValueAct Capital and its investment thesis. [6:20] How he met Jeffrey Ubben (founder of the firm). The impact of the corporate scandals in the early 2000s and the Martha Stewart story. Building a reputation as long term thinkers with board members that add value, plus network. How they...
Ilya Strebulaev: Focusing on the Finance and Governance of Venture-Backed Companies.
October 19, 2020 14:03 - 1 hour - 58 MBStart of interview [1:19] Ilya's "origin story" [1:50] Lomonosov Moscow State University ('97) New Economic School (NES) ('99) London Business School, PhD Finance ('04) His start as a Professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (2004-Present) [7:08] His initial interest in the field of venture capital [7:56] "These days my major problem is that there are so many research projects, and I have to juggle 10 different (amazing) research projects at the same time." Why governan...
Kerrie Waring: "All Stakeholders Are Important, But Only Shareholders Can Effectively Hold Boards to Account"
October 12, 2020 12:41 - 51 minutes - 47.1 MBStart of interview [1:06] Kerrie's "origin story" [1:34] Her initiation on corporate governance matters with the UK Institute of Directors (IoD) (2000-2004) [3:49] Her take on corporate director education and training [5:42] Her role at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) (2005-2008) [7:43] Her transition to the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) (2008-Present) [9:49] History and mission of ICGN [11:56]. It was established in 1995, it ha...
Ahmad Thomas: "We Made a Decision to Stand on the Side of Progress by Supporting AB-979, California's New Boardroom Diversity Law"
October 05, 2020 13:54 - 59 minutes - 54.6 MBStart of interview [1:11] Ahmad's "origin story" [1:52] His experience as senior aide to U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein in Washington, D.C. (2005-2010) [4:29] TARP Programs Dodd Frank Act His experience with Barclays Investment Bank covering public sector infrastructure (2010-2020) [7:41] Led Barclays’ California and Silicon Valley regional municipal banking team. Led Barclays' public sector coverage of social impact engagements in the 13 western U.S. states. Served as a lead banker ...
Ahmad Thomas: "We Made a Decision to Stand on the Side of Progress by Supporting AB-979"
October 05, 2020 13:54 - 59 minutes - 54.6 MBStart of interview [1:11] Ahmad's "origin story" [1:52] His experience as senior aide to U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein in Washington, D.C. (2005-2010) [4:29] TARP Programs Dodd Frank Act His experience with Barclays Investment Bank covering public sector infrastructure (2010-2020) [7:41] Led Barclays’ California and Silicon Valley regional municipal banking team. Led Barclays' public sector coverage of social impact engagements in the 13 western U.S. states. Served as a lead banker ...
Esther Aguilera: "Latinos Are The Most Underrepresented Minorities on U.S. Corporate Boards"
September 29, 2020 13:53 - 47 minutes - 43.7 MBStart of interview [1:25] Esther's "origin story" [1:50] Her experience at Occidental College [3:55] Her transition from CA to Washington DC [4:36] Introduction of the Latino Corporate Director Association (LCDA), founded in 2016 [6:20] History of LCDA [7:15] Links with the Hispanic Association of Corporate Responsibility (HACR) The Mission of LCDA is to 1) develop, 2) support & 3) increase the number of Latinos on Corporate Boards [8:56] LCDA Pillars [9:06]: 1) Increase supply (Lati...
Dr. Roger Barker: Corporate Governance in the U.K. and Europe.
September 08, 2020 13:49 - 59 minutes - 54.4 MBStart of interview [1:15] Roger's "origin story" [1:50] Introduction of the Institute of Directors of the UK (IoD founded in 1903) [4:56] On the evolution of director education and professionalization in the UK. "Modern" corporate governance in the UK was kickstarted by high profile scandals in the late 1980s such as Robert Maxwell's media empire collapse, Polly Peck, BBCI, etc. which led to the Cadbury Committee in 1992 [7:00] No certification required to be a director in the UK "this...
Mark Molumphy: "Boards of Directors Routinely Fail to React Properly in Times of Crisis"
September 03, 2020 15:38 - 59 minutes - 54.2 MBStart of interview [1:12] Mark's "origin story" [2:02] How he got started with Cotchett, Mitre & McCarthy (1993) [3:40] His current practice focusing on corporate governance cases [5:03] His opinion on current state of corporate governance in public companies: Increased focus on diversity on boards [7:27] Data Breaches, Privacy and Cybersecurity "one of the hottest areas" [10:03] His take on the current TikTok situation (forced sale by US President) [12:08] "The CISO is the most imp...
James McRitchie: The Gadfly Seeking Corporate Change Via Shareholder Proposals
August 19, 2020 14:23 - 51 minutes - 47.1 MBStart of interview [1:30] Jim's "origin story" [2:12] How his experience at CalEPA led him to become a shareholder advocate [6:07] His experience with Mark Latham, a former Berkeley Prof and Salomon Brothers banker on developing and promoting a new shareholder proposal method [8:03] His efforts to get elected to the CalPERS board [11:33] CalPERS and the increasing influence of institutional investors in corporate governance [12:53] "Thirty years ago no shareholder proposal had ever ...
Frederick Alexander: Benefit Corporations, B-Corps and the Shareholder Commons.
August 10, 2020 13:37 - 1 hour - 60.2 MBStart of interview [1:38] Rick's "origin story" [1:55] His "traditional" corporate law practice for 25 years with Morris Nichols in Delaware ("the core of our advice followed two simple rules: shareholders get to elect the directors, and directors run the company for the benefit of those shareholders... all the rest is commentary") [3:45] How his focus changed in 2010 with B Lab's effort to push legislation in DE on benefit corporations [5:45] How B Lab's benefit corporations proposal d...
Marta Viegas: Focusing on Corporate Governance in Latin America and the Caribbean with IDB Invest.
August 03, 2020 13:31 - 1 hour - 56.6 MBStart of interview. [1:40] Marta's "origin story" from Brazil to Washington DC [2:21] Her involvement with corporate governance education in Brazil with IBGC [6:31] The impact of Lava Jato (operation car wash) in Brazilian corporate governance (2014) [8:33] Her role coordinating the "comply or explain" Brazilian Corporate Governance Code [11:07] What made her transition from Tozzini Freire to IDB Invest in 2017? [16:31] What is IDB Invest? [19:13] Description of the Corporate Governa...
Dr. Linda Maxwell: "The Lack of Inclusion in Healthcare is Present at All Levels, including on Boards of Directors"
July 27, 2020 15:47 - 1 hour - 57.4 MBStart of interview. [1:40] Linda's "origin story" from Beresford, New Brunswick, Canada. [2:15] The record of five Maxwell sisters at Harvard. [3:56] Her start as a head and neck surgeon. [6:28] Why an MBA at Oxford? [07:20] Her work on life sciences tech transfer at Oxford University Innovation and NHS. [08:25] Her time with the London (UK) Harvard Business School Angels. [11:24] Working with Medtronic in Sao Paulo, Brazil. [12:07] Her work founding the Biomedical Zone in 2015 (Rye...
Nicholas Benes: "We Need to Redesign the Corporation to Provide Better Incentives"
July 21, 2020 00:03 - 1 hour - 56.7 MBStart of interview [1:40] Nick's "origin story", from New Jersey to California to Japan [3:33] His first board experience with Alps Mapping ('00-'06) [7:34] Why he founded the Board Director Training Institute of Japan in 2009 [12:40] His WSJ article on "Japan's Coming Shareholder Revolution" (2001) [19:42] Japan's keiretsu system ("a defensive cross-shareholding wall") [21:04] The historical resistance against having independent directors in Japan companies [23:25] The effect of th...
Miriam Rivera: "If You Invest In Diverse Teams, It Will Lead to Financial Outperformance"
July 06, 2020 16:03 - 57 minutes - 52.8 MBStart of interview [1:44] Miriam's "origin story" from Puerto Rico to the U.S. mainland [2:17] Her pick for a dual JD/MBA degree [3:16] Her experience as a startup founder in the late 1990s [5:17] Her early experience at Google starting 2001 [07:08] Her focus on angel investing and entry into the VC industry [08:09] Her experience with the Kauffman Fellows Program "they were at the forefront of diversifying VC" [10:18] How to think about corporate boards from the seed stage onward [1...
Suzanne Vautrinot: From the Military to the Corporate Boardroom, with a Focus on Cybersecurity.
June 29, 2020 15:33 - 1 hour - 58.9 MBStart of Interview [1:33] Suzanne's start in the U.S. Air Force [2:50] Her transition to cyber operations [4:25] Suzanne's take on transitioning from the Military to corporate boardrooms [7:25] Adding former military leaders in the boardroom adds to "diversity of thought": "[Board composition] should seek concinnity, rather than falling into the lowest common denominator which would be consensus" [09:07] At the time of Suzanne's transition to the private sector, "the Government had rec...
Mervyn King: "Integrated Thinking and Reporting is Critical for Corporate Directors"
June 25, 2020 03:56 - 1 hour - 57 MBStart of Interview [1:45] Mervyn King's origin story as an attorney in South Africa [2:51] His first foray into corporate boards and later senior management roles [4:30] Why he was asked to form a Corporate Governance Committee in 1992 [5:30] The call from Nelson Mandela [06:07] Professor Lynn Paine's article: The Error at the Heart of Corporate Leadership [9:43] How King framed the role of the corporation in the first King I Report in 1992 [12:10] "Decisions by the Board need to be...
Anat Admati: "I Don't Want CEOs to Solve Society's Problems, I Want the Government to Solve Them"
June 22, 2020 15:39 - 58 minutes - 53.4 MBStart of Interview [1:30] How Anat's research evolved from corporate finance to corporate governance [3:40] How the Financial Crisis ignited her research interest in the banking sector [4:25] What's "special" about the finance and banking industries? [8:31] Why the lack of equity funding in banking? [10:12] The premise of her book "The Bankers' New Clothes" [11:28] "In banking you can be insolvent forever if you don't default" [13:27] "JPM's assets on balance sheet: ~$2.5T, plus off ...
Heidi Roizen: "A Good Board Member Has to Be Willing to Speak Truth, Even When It Is Unpopular"
June 15, 2020 13:50 - 1 hour - 58.2 MBStart of Interview [1:32] Heidi's origin story and career pre-venture capital [2:00] Heidi's first board experience: Great Plains Software prior to its IPO in 1997 [6:01] Joining Softbank Venture Capital (Mobius Venture Capital) in 1999 [09:09] The HBS Heidi Roizen Case Study [12:50] Her experience with foreign boards (UK, Canada) and take on transnational directors [16:21] Re-entering the VC market with DFJ and Threshold Ventures [23:25] Private tech company board governance challen...
Scott Kupor: The Secrets of Sand Hill Road.
June 11, 2020 19:30 - 1 hour - 56.1 MBStart of Interview [1:51] How is a16z dealing with COVID-19, plus its new Talent & Opportunity Fund [2:31] Scott's professional background [3:48] The shift from traditional VC firm to Registered Investment Advisor (to pursue investment opportunities beyond traditional equity, such as crypto) [6:00] The governance chapters of his book The Secrets of Sand Hill Road. Distinctions between public and private venture-backed boards [12:11]: The contrast in board composition in the private and...
Scott Kupor: "We Have Institutionalized The Network To Support Our Portfolio CEOs"
June 11, 2020 19:30 - 1 hour - 56.1 MBStart of Interview [1:51] How is a16z dealing with COVID-19, plus its new Talent & Opportunity Fund [2:31] Scott's professional background [3:48] The shift from traditional VC firm to Registered Investment Advisor (to pursue investment opportunities beyond traditional equity, such as crypto) [6:00] The governance chapters of his book The Secrets of Sand Hill Road. Distinctions between public and private venture-backed boards [12:11]: The contrast in board composition in the private and...
Kate Mitchell: Applying a Growth Mindset to Boards.
June 08, 2020 15:50 - 1 hour - 57.9 MBStart of Interview [1:22] Kate's path to the Venture Capital ("VC") industry [2:00] Kate's path to serving on boards [5:18] Distinctions between serving on private and public boards [8:43] The investor nominated director [9:10] The role of the independent director [12:47] Directors representing preferred stock, and longer term horizons [13:51] In a startup board, "all constituents are around the table, or right outside the door coding" [15:10] Startups staying private for longer, a...
Elizabeth Pollman: Startup Governance & Regulatory Entrepreneurship
June 01, 2020 13:49 - 1 hour - 56.1 MBStart of Interview [1:51] Motivation for writing her Startup Governance Article [3:22] Why are companies "staying private" for longer [6:18] The JOBS Act amendment of Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act [7:30] Discussion on secondary markets for private shares [10:00] Challenges of startups "staying private forever" [11:54] Distinctions between public and private market regulatory frameworks [13:36] The vertical and horizontal startup governance issues [18:14] Distinctions between pre...
David Beatty: "Boards Should Invest More Time on Foresight"
May 22, 2020 14:16 - 1 hour - 58.2 MBHis experience in Papua New Guinea [3:57] Sailing in the South Pacific [7:17] His first board: the OK Tedi Development Corporation [12:20] His management roles: Gardiner Capital Group and Weston Foods [17:53] The founding of the Canadian Coalition for Good Governance [19:29] Peter Drucker's "Follow the Wagon Train Strategy" [21:35] Board Games (Globe and Mail's ranking of Canada's corporate boards) [23:12] Joining the Rotman School of Management (University of Toronto) [25:34] The s...
Joe Grundfest: "Without Luck, Nothing Good Happens."
May 12, 2020 23:33 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBStart of Episode [1:31] Luck and skill: "Without luck nothing good happens" [3:21] Joe's experience as a Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission [5:33] Transition from the S.E.C. to Stanford Law School [8:16] The story of Financial Engines [11:04] Taking Financial Engines private [14:54] The Oracle Derivative Litigation Case (2003) [17:17] The KKR board [20:19] The story of Stanford's Directors' College [23:31] Federal-forum selection charter provisions and the Sciab...
"Without Luck, Nothing Good Happens."
May 12, 2020 23:33 - 1 hour - 56.6 MBStart of Episode [1:31] Luck and skill: "Without luck nothing good happens" [3:35] Joe's experience as a Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission [5:59] Transition from the S.E.C. to Stanford Law School [8:42] The story of Financial Engines [11:34] Taking Financial Engines private [15:25] The Oracle Case [17:54] The KKR board [21:00] The story of Stanford's Directors' College [24:20] Federal-forum selection charter provisions and the Sciabacucchi case [27:28] ...
Introducing Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein
May 12, 2020 12:47 - 2 minutes - 1.84 MBIntroducing Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein: Short introduction of host. Premise of the podcast. Description: in-depth interview podcast to learn from some of the top corporate governance experts, including world-class founders, scholars, board members, executives, investors and more. Thank you for tuning-in, and I encourage you to subscribe to this podcast if you're interested in corporate governance, board related matters, or leadership generally. Music/Soundtrack (found via F...