THE COMPANY SECRETARY AS A GOVERNANCE CATALYST: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES – A 3 MODULE PROGRAM

Duration: One-and-a-half-day workshop delivered virtually.

Overview: This program will focus on the principles and best practices of effective governance for organizations operating in the Caribbean Region.  The workshop will begin with a module focused on discussing the emerging role of the Company Secretary as a governance professional. Module 2 will focus the role of the Company Secretary in all aspects of Meeting Management, providing tools and templates to assist with more effective outcomes.  The final module will provide key insights into the emerging practices for more effective recording of minutes to ensure the organization has an appropriate record of its decisions and decision processes.  Throughout the workshop series we will examine board/management relations and the key emerging role of the Company Secretary in securing effective relations through information management.
Questions and informal discussion will be encouraged throughout the session to address specific concerns that are raised

Objectives

• Provide participants with a clear understanding of the emerging role of the Company Secretary in securing more effective organizational governance
• Articulate the 5 key principles of effective governance and how the CS supports them within their organization
• Provide guidance and best practice on agenda and meeting management
• Discuss effective minute taking – what to leave in and take out – and ensuring accurate and complete minutes
• Provide an opportunity for participants to raise and address specific concerns.

Date: September 27 full day from 9:00-4:00 (UTC-4) and September 28 from 9:00-noon (UTC-4)

Workshop Fee
EC$2,400.00
You may register here

Facilitator

Ms Janis A Riven, BCL, LLB, MBA, FCG, Acc. Dir
Ms Riven, based in Montreal, has an established consulting practice on governance and compliance matters with clients encompassing publicly listed and closely held companies, as well as various types of not-for-profits, and is currently Adjunct Professor at the John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, where she teaches Corporate Governance. She is a well-known speaker both in Canada and abroad at conferences on corporate governance and has acted as a facilitator for boards and board committees of several different organizations seeking to improve their governance effectiveness.
Ms Riven was formerly Vice President, Compliance and Secretary for the Canadian and global operations of RBC Insurance. She is a member of the Quebec Bar and a Fellow of The Chartered Governance Institute of Canada, of which she is a Past President. A seasoned board member, Janis currently serves on the boards of Elixir Technologies, a fintech company, and the Quebec Council of CGIC.

ECSE-PBC Governance CPD Webinar Series

Driving Board Success with Emotional Intelligence

Summary/Purpose:  So much of the success or otherwise of boards is focused on their behaviours. Far too many governance scandals have resulted from a failure around behaviours – whether it is mindset, attitude, moral and ethical turpitude, or an honest failure to look beyond the immediate issues. This session will enable board members and those who support them to identify how boards can drive success and impact by being role models for the characteristics that will drive success throughout the organization. 

Content: The session will identify the behaviours and qualities of the most effective directors and how the Board Chair is instrumental in creating the conditions for these behaviours to flourish. We will also look at how we can create and maintain a culture of excellence and examine what that looks like in practice. One of the key components of an excellent board is having the awareness of being able to identify and address strategic blind spots, which could in the worst case spell the demise of the business. With all this insight, how do we put it all together to create a board that truly has impact as a collective that evolves beyond its fiduciary and oversight roles into achieving its potential as an innovative learning board. 

Outcomes and Benefits: With its emphasis on Emotional Intelligence/Emotional Quotient (EQ) and soft skills, this session will equip participants with the tools and strategies to think about their own board in a way that drives success. It will provide a greater appreciation of how board behaviours, attitudes and mindset at the individual and collective level can result in a high functioning board or conversely can derail it; how strong leadership by the chair can create the right culture and ensure that the board does not fall foul of these strategic blind spots but ensures a cognitive diversity so that groupthink is avoided, debate is robust and oversight rigorous and the board makes well-informed decisions, having considered all the issues and alternatives to successfully fulfil its functions. Through its analysis of current governance  concerns for Caribbean boards, It will also set you on the path to thinking about your Board as part of its continuous improvement by helping you to ask those challenging questions to move the Board forward.

Who Will Benefit by Attending: Board and Committee Chairs, Individual directors, boards (as a collective), corporate secretaries and any senior management team member or governance professional that interacts with their Board.

Registration: The webinar will be delivered on Wednesday July 6, 2022 at 12PM UTC-4. To register click here

Your Facilitator:

Paul has 25 years of corporate secretarial, corporate governance and regulatory experience both in house and as a professional services consultant in the United Kingdom, Canada, Caribbean and the Middle East. He has worked for KPMG LLP and PwC in leadership roles and served in senior in-house roles for several listed financial services companies. He has also provided governance services to Mid-Cap and Large-Cap companies in Europe, North and South America and the Caribbean region. Paul has worked extensively with a diverse range of boards and senior management teams on governance matters. His most recent assignment was as Head of Corporate Governance at First Abu Dhabi Bank, the largest bank in the Gulf region, where he developed the Bank’s corporate governance framework, advised the Board and executive management on the new UAE Corporate Governance Regulations, refined the Bank’s management committee, and developed its international governance structure across twenty jurisdictions globally.

A certified life coach, group coach and certified emotional intelligence (EQ-i) assessor and practitioner, Paul founded Perfect Balance Consulting (www.perfectbalanceconsulting.ca), providing governance solutions to small/mid-Cap organizations, group training across a variety of business solutions, and one-to-one executive coaching to mid-senior level professionals with a focus on leadership and EQ. Paul delivered the first webinar in the series, called Board Dynamics: A Key to Effective Oversight, and recently released the book EQ for the Governance Professional, which explores the vast range of soft skills required of a successful governance practitioner. Paul is a Fellow of the Chartered Governance Institute of Canada (CGIC) and holds an LLB from Middlesex University (UK) and a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from Leicester De Montfort University (UK). Paul’s book can be found here

ECSE-PBC Governance CPD Webinar Series

Business Continuity and Crisis Management in the Technological Age: A Strategic Journey

Summary/Purpose: The business environment is fast changing, we are in the 4^th industrial revolution. Technology, data and information is now on the agenda at the Executive Committee and for Board of Director meetings. What is keeping you up at night? Is information, data and IT governance and IT security key parts of your corporate objectives? 

Over this short masterclass we will consider business continuity management and crisis management in a technological environment. We will consider some of the opportunities and risks associated with doing business and how to remain relevant and sustainable with consideration of environment, social and governance elements.

Content: Our session takes a whirlwind overview of technological change, particularly in relation to the rise of machines and artificial intelligence in business, and associated data and privacy risks. We look at lessons learned from previous business disruptions and disasters and how to protect your corporate reputation. We also look at the steps involved in developing a business continuity management (BCM) plan and crisis management (CM), examining the duties, governance and strategic thinking for these plans. This includes the communication plan, the relationship with regulators, and extends beyond conventional risk management to embed a strategic risk culture within the organization. We also take a forward-looking approach to assess the business environment of the future and what boards and executive management should focus on to ensure that they have an effective and evolving response to systemic shocks.   

Benefits: Attendees will walk away with a clear understanding of the impact of technology and the associated risks to their business, and the factors to consider when developing their organization’s BCM and CM strategy. They will have a greater appreciation of the risks both internally and externally, which can often materialise unexpectedly and rapidly. Attendees will have the tools to rigorously question their organization’s approach, including an assessment of resilience, impact on reputation and the highly important communications response, and to assess how that approach can evolve with the rapid changes in issues such as ESG in the business environment.  

Who should attend: Board chairs, company directors, company secretaries, and chief executives. 

Registration: The webinar will be delivered on Wednesday May 18, 2022 at 12PM EST. To register click here

Your Facilitator:

Robert is a leadership, corporate governance and corporate culture expert and has worked with many of the leading international accounting, law and consulting firms He has lived and worked in the UK, Middle East and South East Asia, providing board and governance advisory, consulting and training to boards, senior executives and management teams.

Before living in Dubai and Malaysia Robert was the Managing Director for Citco London, part of the Citco Group of Companies which is an international financial services company providing, hedge fund administration, fund of funds, corporate and trust, fiduciary services, family structuring and private client advisory services for tax planning and governance optimisation.

He is an experienced company director (in UK and UAE) and governance advisor He has advised and worked with the boards of international companies and a multi billion dollar government entity (part of Dubai Holding) He advises clients in the Middle East and South East Asia on Transformation Change Management, Corporate Governance, Diversity and Culture, Leadership and Strategic Excellence, Business Continuity Management/ Crisis Management, Risk Management and Compliance, Board Effectiveness and Operational Excellence.

Most recently Robert advised a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund ( on corporate governance, board evaluations, strategy development and business plan refreshment. He also conducted a corporate governance simplification project for a Listed company in Dubai to tie their new strategy, operational structure and organisational model. He is providing executive coaching and training for a senior executive in a Dubai Bank and previous provided executive coaching for a senior UAE bank employee.

Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange (ECSE) Signs Master Agreement with Blockstation to Launch Regulated Digital Asset Platform

The ECSE set to become the first regulated exchange in the Western Hemisphere to enable Tokenized IPOs

Toronto, Canada and Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 29, 2022 – The Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange Ltd (ECSE) is pleased to announce the signing of a Master Agreement with Canadian FinTech Blockstation to launch a new blockchain-driven tokenized securities market.

The ECSE, a regional exchange representing eight Caribbean national economies, will leverage the Blockstation Ecosystem to attract a new class of issuer that is technology savvy and eager to tokenize their securities and raise capital on the open market. A Tokenized IPO can reduce time and cost when compared to traditional workflows, driving efficiencies for all parties and positioning the ECSE as an innovation leader among regulated stock exchanges.

“By embracing tokenization of securities on the Blockchain, we send a strong signal to issuers and investors everywhere that we are ready for the next evolution in capital markets,” says Trevor Blake, ECSE’s Managing Director. “Our partnership with Blockstation will ensure our ability to provide a safe, secure, and highly efficient on-ramp for issuers to conduct Tokenized IPOs, raise capital, and attract the investors they need to grow and thrive.”

This Master Agreement follows a successful pilot of the Blockstation platform which involved the ECSE, the Eastern Caribbean Central Securities Depository Ltd, First Citizens Investment Services Ltd, the Bank of St. Lucia Ltd, and the Grenada Co-operative Bank Ltd in 2021. The pilot confirmed the suitability of Blockstation to provide end-to-end functionality for all stakeholders to list, trade, clear and settle tokenized securities as well as manage the compliant onboarding of issuers and investors in a regulated environment.

“We’re excited to partner with the ECSE in creating a new securities marketplace built around Blockchain, tokenization and smart contract technology,” says Marko M. Hafez, Co-Founder and CEO of Blockstation. “The tokenized securities market is rapidly increasing in value around the globe and a holistic, blockchain-driven solution is exactly what regulated exchanges need to modernize, attract issuers, support Tokenized IPOs, and remain competitive in today’s digital marketplace.”

About ECSE

The Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange Ltd (ECSE) is a fully electronic regional exchange that was promoted by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), as a part of a programme to develop money and capital markets in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU). The ECSE, was launched in October 2001, along with two subsidiaries, the Eastern Caribbean Central Securities Registry Ltd (ECCSR) and the Eastern Caribbean Central Securities Depository Ltd (ECCSD), to provide the infrastructure for the trading, clearing and settlement, and registration and transfer of financial assets on the Eastern Caribbean Securities market (ECSM) and, subsequently, the Regional Government Securities Market (RGSM).  The ECCSR was subsequently wound up, as a part of a Group rationalization exercise, and its activities subsumed into the ECCSD.  Consistent with industry norms, the ECCSD then became a full service CSD providing a full range of post trade services. www.ecseonline.com

ECSE media contact:
Trevor E Blake
Managing Director
info@ecseonline.com
1-869-466-7192    

About Blockstation Inc.

Blockstation is a holistic, blockchain-driven platform for the entire lifecycle of listing, trading, clearing and settlement of securities and tokenized securities and digital assets within the regulated capital marketplace. As an ecosystem solution, Blockstation serves international stock exchanges and their network of broker-dealer, regulator and depository partners with turn-key, end-to-end functionality to incorporate digital assets into their book of business, empowering them to attract new issuers, increase trading revenue, and satisfy market demand for digital assets.

Blockstation media contact:
Michael Spiar
Communications & Education Manager
michael.spiar@blockstation.com
1-800-599-7180 X3

ECSE-PBC Governance CPD Webinar Series

Leadership: What Makes a Great Board Chair

Summary/Purpose: Evidence of why ineffective leadership manifests in the wrong culture in the Board and the organisation and therefore delivers a Board that is not leading effectively and ultimately the impact will show on the bottom line, directly impacting the business’ long term sustainability.
The global financial crisis created evidence that compliance can tick the box and culture can destroy the business and not deliver the duty of care to the customer. Implications of culture are often felt globally, as felt in the aftermath of the BP Deep Water Horizon disaster.

Content: Stakeholders are at the mercy of all the leadership roles throughout an organisation. Some recognise this within the hierarchy and management of the company, but the Board seems to think that it is immune from delivering a negative impact on the business and its many stakeholders.
The session will cover how easy it is to lead ineffectively but importantly that it is totally feasible that change can occur with effective outcomes materialising very quickly. The difficult part is recognising what needs changing, accepting the change journey and ensuring that the actions taken will deliver the desired improved outcome of effective leadership.

Benefits: As humans we have a biased view on our abilities, it can range from being invincible, over positive, self-deprecating or completely undermining. We are all leaders in one way or another, we may be the Chair, be on the Board or work with the Chair, and we recognise, that from the “outside”, we can more clearly identify the strengths and weaknesses of a Chair than they are realistically able to do.
Learn how to self-assess against a balanced framework, how to respect challenge and support and recognise the value of peer learning or mentoring.

Who should attend: Board chairs, company directors, company secretaries, and chief executives.

Registration: The webinar will be delivered on March 16, 2022 at 12PM UTC-4. To register click here.

Your Facilitator

Sharon, who is based in the UK, is a Chartered Governance Professional and has been a Fellow or Associate of the UK Chartered Governance Institute for over 40 years.

Sharon is also a Chartered Director of the IoD and holds an MBA and a number of Financial Services and Regulatory qualifications.

She is on the Court of the Worshipful Company of Company Secretaries and Chairs their Membership Committee. She is currently the Chairman of the South African Chamber of Commerce in the UK and the Council of Foreign Chambers in the UK.

She is CEO of the Genius governance group of companies and runs foreign exchange risk management services to corporates.

Sharon listed her first company on the Stock Exchange and is responsible for the creation of a number of complex “software as a service SaaS” products. One range being a support to risk and compliance evidence, controls and management.

She lectures for the final Level 7 exam for Company Secretaries of the Chartered Governance Institute and lectures for the Corporate Governance Institute on their NED program.

Sharon has authored many pieces on governance focusing on the presence, impact and management of boardroom dynamics, speaks at international conferences, leads on governance webinars and runs workshops and case studies to support turnaround governance learning.

ECSE-PBC Governance CPD Webinar Series

Stakeholder Capitalism: Creating Long-Term Social Value and Profits – What the Evidence Shows

Summary/Purpose: to show why “stakeholder capitalism or shareholder capitalism” is a false dichotomy, and that rigorous academic supports responsible businesses who want to create long term value and increase their profitability. To examine the shifts driving stakeholder capitalism and why this is leading to the integration of corporate governance and corporate responsibility. [Looking at common misperceptions about building trust and some surprising discoveries.

Content: the importance of evidence when making investment decisions, and a highly practical framework that boards can use when facing investment trade-offs. Looking at four global transformations that are the foundation of stakeholder capitalism, and what this means for corporate governance in the future. [Examining the four traits of trust and how they are often misunderstood.]

Benefits: to understand what the evidence shows on how boards can create value and improve profitability. Show how boards can adopt a practical evidence-driven framework when making investment decisions that doesn’t involve multiple spreadsheets. Understand the key drivers for stakeholder capitalism and what this means for corporate governance. [Understand how trust really works, and why this can be counter intuitive.]

Who should attend: Board chairs, company directors, company secretaries, and chief executives.

Registration: The webinar was delivered on January 19, 2022 at 12PM UTC-4.

Your Facilitator:

Stephen, who is based in London, is a Chartered Governance Professional and has been a Fellow of the UK Chartered Governance Institute for over 25 years. During this time, he has acted as director, group corporate secretary, head of legal, and independent corporate advisor for many UK and non-UK public and private companies, including multinational groups, professional service firms and private capital concerns. Most recently he was Nasdaq’s international head of centre of corporate governance.

Stephen established his own successful corporate compliance services business in the early 2000s, which was eventually acquired by an overseas bank. In recent years, Stephen has spoken on many governance topics at a number of international conferences.

Annual Reports of the ECSE

ECSE-PBC Governance CPD Webinar Series

Collective Efficacy: Towards High Board Performance

Summary/Purpose: Increase board decision-making quality and impact of boards beyond the boardroom.

Content: Explore the dynamic world within which boards and companies operate, the challenging craft of board work, and an alternative approach to governance, the strategic governance framework, to assist boards become more effective and exert influence beyond the boardroom.

Benefits: Gain practical insights into the real-world challenges boards must deal with and the hurdles to be overcome. Learn about an actionable framework for more effective board contributions. A highly interactive and practically oriented session with plenty of time to address participant’s questions.

Who should attend: Board chairs, company directors, company secretaries, and chief executives.

Date: The webinar was delivered on Wednesday December 8^th 2021 at 12PM (UTC -4).  

Your Facilitator:

Speaker: Dr. Peter Crow is a respected authority on governance and the craft of board work with an extensive international record advising and educating boards. He is also an experienced company director and chairman. His contributions have proved influential to the fortunes of a wide range of enterprises, across five continents.

Dr. Crow holds a doctorate in corporate governance and strategy, chartered membership of the Institute of Directors and memberships of several international institutions including the International Corporate Governance Network and the Global Peter Drucker Society.