The corporate board of the 21st Century will not look like the boards of years past. Following a wave of scandals and ensuing corporate governance reforms, the corporate board is going through a sweeping transformation set to make it more independent, active and engaged.

The core of this transformation is board composition. Boards are taking steps to become more independent, spurred by both investor pressure and new legal frameworks like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and revised listing standards at major stock exchanges. At the same time, sitting board directors face greater responsibilities, time commitments and personal liability, and many are limiting the number of boards on which they serve. By one estimate, 15% of sitting directors of U.S. public companies will relinquish their seats over the next year – three times the normal turnover rate.

To recruit new independent directors, corporate boards will need to look beyond conventional sources. Yet simply finding greater numbers of independent candidates is not enough. Boards want highly qualified individuals with the experience and skills to make a contribution to the company and an ability to make the board itself more effective. Finding well-qualified independent directors with the right combination of interpersonal skills, relevant expertise and leadership qualities is a critical task that requires a specialized approach.

The Directors’ Council was formed to meet this need.

-> DHB Industries Announces the Appointments of David Bell to Its Board of Directors

-> DHB ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

-> DHB Industries Announces Appointment of Jack. A. Henry to Board of Directors

-> Brunswick Corporation Elects Cammie W. Dunaway to Board of Directors

-> GSI Commerce Nominates Andrea Weiss to Its Board of Directors

-> The South Financial Group Appoints Challis M. Lowe as a Director

-> DHR Announces Appointment Of Linda P. Hefner As Director

-> Beacon Power Announces Election of New Board Member

-> Power-One Announces New Director

-> Christie Hefner Named One of Forbes Most Powerful Women - 2005

-> Human Capital Pays Dividends for Entrepreneurs

-> W. Roy Dunbar Biography

-> Instinet Group Board Elects New Member

-> Beyond Good Intentions

-> Beauty & The Boardroom: 8 Wall Street Women Tackle Sarbanes-Oxley

-> KB Home Elects Two New Board Members

-> Forbes.com - Q & A with Kay Koplovitz

-> Survey Finds Few Female Directors; No Women Serve on Boards of 54 Fortune 500 Firms

-> Prominent businesswomen launch The Directors' Council to recruit independent board members

-> USA Today - Directors' Council seeks diversity


-> Dick Parsons, Chairman & CEO of Time Warner, said: "As board members of leading companies, the Directors' Council's partners understand boards' needs, and they know the characteristics of effective directors and cohesive boards. The fact that they also mentor their new placements--going above and beyond current industry practices--is a major reason we engaged the Council."
-> Dennis Carey, Vice Chairman of Spencer Stuart, said: "As demand surges for new, independent board members, The Directors' Council provides a needed service by augmenting the pool of qualified women and minority directors. The founders of The Directors' Council are all seasoned corporate directors and are very knowledgeable about the attributes of an effective director."
-> Don Fites, retired Chairman & CEO of Caterpillar, Inc. and Chairman of the governance committee at AT&T Wireless, said: "We retained The Directors' Council to find an independent director for the AT&T Wireless board, and they quickly presented us with a diverse and well-qualified group of talented women. John Zeglis, our CEO, and I both agreed that this was one of the most impressive and thoroughly researched group of candidates we have ever reviewed. I look forward to working with The Directors' Council as they bring new talent, skills and greater diversity to corporate boards across the country."
-> Ira Millstein, senior partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, said: "The Directors Council is an idea whose time has come. Indeed it's overdue. This is not a search firm devoted to the old fashioned notion that we must have "one" on the Board. It is a unique firm devoted to placing an overlooked pool of very talented people. Its methodology assures sensible approaches, and its founders assure hands on quality and experience."
-> Judy B. Rosener, Ph.D., Author, America's Competitive Secret, Women Managers, said: "It's hard to ignore the evidence that putting women on boards makes good business sense. The presence of women on corporate boards is consistent with the number of professional women in the labor pool, the huge female market, the attention of women to good corporate governance practices, and the unique leadership attributes they bring to work. For this reason, The Directors Council is an important corporate board resource."
-> Bruce Karatz, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, KB Home, said: "We retained The Directors' Council to find an independent director for our board, and were extremely pleased with the results. The Directors' Council worked quickly and efficiently, presented us with an outstanding slate of candidates, and one of the partners was personally involved from start to finish. The Directors' Council did a first rate search. "
-> W. Roy Dunbar, Director, Electronic Data Systems Corporation , said: "From the first contact, the Directors' Council demonstrated a profound understanding of my talents and accomplishments. The firm carefully examined my likely fit with the prospective Board. With an impressive attentiveness to detail in arranging interviews with sitting Board members, the Council won my confidence and trust. "
-> Mark Melliar-Smith, Chairman, Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, Power-One, Inc., said: "With the new emphasis and regulations on corporate governance and oversight, finding the right board members has become both increasingly important and difficult. Power-One recently used the Directors' Council to find an excellent financial expert to head our audit committee. I was particularly impressed with the slate of well qualified individuals that was presented, and the depth of information available to help with our initial short listing. In addition, the final selection process and interviews were handled in an exemplary manner, and the support provided by all levels of the organization was excellent. I look forward to working with the Directors' Council in the future."
-> William F. (Bill) Capp, President, CEO and Director, Beacon Power Corporation, said: "The Directors’ Council found a board candidate that added a great deal to our board! Lisa Zappala knows our business and has significant strategic and financial experience. Her experience represents the kind of leadership that Beacon Power was looking for and her substantial achievements at Aspen Technology, Inc., then a $300-million publicly traded software and services company, provided a valuable catalyst as we strive to be the best energy storage and power conversion company in the world."