Vodafone 2016 Annual Report Download - page 47

Board evaluation, induction and training
Board Evaluation
Progress against recommendations set in 2015
Recommendation: The Board should continue
to develop its understanding of the future challenges and trends
in Vodafone’s sector, especially convergence, technology trends and
the regulatory environment.
Action taken in 2016: The Board received relevant training and
carried out deep dives into these areas which were considered
at Board meetings throughout the year.
Recommendation: The Board should increase its focus
on customers’ experience and it should continue to monitor
management’s success in delivering operational strategic objectives.
Action taken in 2016: The Board regularly reviewed the progress
of the Customer eXperience eXcellence programme and continued
to focus on the execution of our strategy.
This year’s process
In accordance with our three-year cycle, our 2016 Board evaluation
was externally facilitated by Fon Hague of Independent Board
Evaluation which has no other connection with Vodafone.
The evaluation included a series of one-on-one interviews with
all Directors and key senior managers, and observations of Board,
Audit and Risk, Remuneration, and Nominations and Governance
Committee meetings. Fon Hague discussed her initial ndings
with the Chairman and presented the nal results to the Board
in March 2016.
Conclusions from this year’s review
The conclusions of this year’s review have been positive and have
conrmed that the Board and its Committees operate effectively
and that each Director contributes to the overall effectiveness and
success of the Group.
The recommendations in this year’s review included:
a reviewing the Board induction and development programme
to focus on strategically signicant areas;
a increasing transparency around Board and executive
successionplans;
a clarifying expectations on an overall strategic framework; and
a creating more opportunities for Board members to spend informal
time together.
The Board will address these recommendations during the 2017
nancial year and will report on progress in our 2017 Annual Report.
Evaluating our
performance and
keeping up to date
The Board recognises that it continually needs to monitor and improve its
performance. This is achieved through annual performance evaluation, full
induction of new Board members and ongoing Board development activities.
Governance in action:
David Nish’s induction
Expertise
a Financial expertise and capital markets skills
Focus areas
a Learn about Vodafone and our business lines
a Learn about Vodafone’s markets, competitions, customers,
business opportunities and risks
a Meet senior management across the Group
Overview of induction programme
David’s induction includes the following:
a meetings with the members of the Executive Committee
to discuss our business, strategy and operations;
a presentations from the management teams of the Europe cluster,
AMAP and Enterprise;
a visits to the headquarters of Vodafone UK, a Vodafone UK store
and Vodafone’s call centre in Stoke-on-Trent (UK);
a meetings with various Group senior managers to discuss Group
strategy, people strategy and remuneration, technology and
marketing, external affairs, nance, investor relations and risk;
a training on his duties as a director and on
Vodafone’s governance structure;
a meeting with the Chairs of the Board
Committees and the Chairman; and
a meeting key Group advisers.
Board Development
The Chairman is responsible for ensuringthat all Non-Executive
Directorsreceive ongoing training and development. Our Non-
Executive Directors are conscious of the need to keep themselves
properly briefed and informed about current issues.
Specic areas covered at sessions attended by Vodafone Directors
in2016were the Enterprise business, technology, share dealing rules
and corporate governance. In June 2015, Val Gooding went on a local
market visit with Vittorio Colao to Vodafone Italy. They attended
customer focus groups, a Customer eXperience eXcellence session run
by local management, visited three retail stores, and received a 4G and
bre presentation.
Specic and tailored updates, delivered by PricewaterhouseCoopers
LLP, were also provided to the members of our Audit and Risk
Committee during the year covering key themes surrounding nancial
and narrative reporting, and accounting and auditing standards.
The Board also received reports from the Group General Counsel and
Company Secretary on current legal and governance issues.
Overview Strategy review Performance Governance Financials Additional information
Vodafone Group Plc
Annual Report 2016
45