Governance Guernsey 2024

Time

Agenda

09.00

Registration, refreshments and networking

09.30

Welcome and Introduction

Grant Wilson FCG, Chair, CGIUKI Guernsey Branch

09.35

Keynote address: How is Guernsey governance presented to the outside world, and why is it important?

Speaker:
Stephanie Glover, Director of Strategy and Sustainable Finance, Guernsey Finance

10.05

Best-practice minutes in an AI age

Writing effective meeting minutes is a delicate balance of art and science, combining precision and process with nuance and judgement. But with AI tools promising to transform every aspect of our working lives, what might an AI-enabled future hold for this highly specialised task and the governance professionals who perform it?

In this session, we'll explore:

• What does good look like when it comes to writing effective meeting minutes?
• Can, and should, AI play a role?
• What are the implications for governance professionals?

Speaker:
Dr Scarlett Brown, Director of Think Tank, Board Intelligence

Sponsored by: Board Intelligence

Coffee break and networking

Corporate Governance: why sustainability must take centre stage

The current corporate governance model is typically considered to exist to control self-interested managers, protect shareholder interests, and overall, prioritise individual financial gain. However, when looking to the future and examining questions of sustainability in business, how do we begin developing a different outcome from business decision making? What changes to corporate governance need to be made to achieve this? And why do we need to think about sustainability in business? Sally Rochester of Mourant, alongside Rollo de Sausmarez of UN1TY and Guernsey Chamber’s Sustainable Business Initiative, will discuss these questions alongside some examples in this space, and explain what a corporate governance model with a purpose rooted in sustainability would look like and be achieved. 

Speakers:
Rollo de Sausmarez, Co-Founder, Chief Sustainability Officer and CMO, Un1ty
Sally Rochester, Director, Mourant Consulting

An M&A Survival Guide

There is no denying that there has been an increase in mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) in the Guernsey marketplace, in several differing industries. From the outside looking in, M&A can appear a complex area. This panel aims to demystify questions that individuals of all experience levels may have around M&A activities. Why do these happen, what is the process that the buyer / bought go through, and how do Companies (and their people) increase the chances of transactions being successful for all parties? We will discuss the answers to these questions and note the Corporate Governance challenges / considerations that professionals involved in these transactions should consider. In addition, our panellists will share anecdotes and lessons learnt from their practical experiences, which may be useful to any Governance professionals in attendance.

Moderator:
Glen Tonks, Chair, Institute of Directors Guernsey and Country Head, UBS

Speakers:
Perrin Carey, Founder, CoSteer
Kate Finlayson, Group Chief Commercial Officer, Oak Group
Jessica Robinson, Senior Legal Counsel, Walkers LLP

Lunch

Update from CGIUKI

Peter Swabey took us through the latest hot topics for governance professionals.

Speaker:
Peter Swabey FCG, Policy & Research Director, The Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland

Subsidiary Governance

Speaker:
Paul Johnston ACG, Associate director, One Advisory

Future of the Governance Professional

Our closing session looks at the future of the Governance Professional

Moderator:
Rebecca Booth MSc FCG, Non-Executive Director

Speaker:
Jacques Colley, Director, Horsepool Consulting
Paul Johnston ACG, Associate director, One Advisory