Ebusiness Despatches: Decruitment dilemmas

I was recently thumbing through Reuters' annual report (as you do), when I came across the directors' piece. It was all sensible and meaningful stuff, and as usual the company has had an excellent year. However, something struck me as a little disturbing. These directors are all male - no surprise there - and the youngest is a sprightly 50-year-old. There are seven directors and their average length of service is over 27 years.

This remarkable statement of loyalty and experience is not peculiar to just Reuters. When I joined the board of IPC Media (nee Magazines) the average length of service was a relatively youthful 17 years. The burning question for me is "Where are the new ideas coming from?"

While working for Marks and Spencer, loyalty was a very important trait, and very low staff turnover (0.75 per cent) was an important measurement of both success and stability. When recruiting for M&S, if a CV landed on my desk and the candidate had had three jobs in five years, we would think "butterfly, lacks corporate loyalty". The real dilemma was whether M&S would get their return on investment if this candidate left after a few years?

Now business time scales have collapsed everywhere. We can achieve so much more in a much shorter time scale. It is time to reconsider measuring successful recruiting, especially in the e-world. The real and only measure surely must be contribution. And we all know now that much can be achieved in six months, let alone a year. Now I hear five jobs in three years and I think initiative, variety, some new ideas and experiences.

Back to the boardroom. One of the big barriers to entry is that incumbents have typically been there for years and don't look like they are going to leave until retirement rears it's ugly head. For up and coming management talent, this can leave no alternative but to take careers by the short and curlies and get out.

When do board directors know their time is up? Who determines it's time for some new talent and a more diverse board of directors that better represents the stakeholders of the organisation? Is it the chairman?

In the case of Reuters, he was a relative Johnny come lately - only 16 years service. In the case of M&S, it was sustained poor performance that led to the demise of most of the board of directors who had displayed tremendous loyalty, most with over 20 years service. Does it need to come to this?

Perhaps there needs to be a 'decruitment' strategy for board directors. This should happen before the rot sets in. The new economy has taught us many things. Lots of them are about how NOT to run a business.

A major and positive lesson - as we look in our rear view mirrors at the dot-com carnage - is that there is a place for both the experience of responsible adults and the expertise and courage of a younger talent pool. A good place to start is the board of directors.

** Rene Carayol is CEO of ebusiness consultancy Voodoo and can be reached via editorial@silicon.com