Barclays 2014 Annual Report Download - page 40

38 I Barclays PLC Annual Report 2014 barclays.com/annualreport
Board commitment
The role of a Barclays Director is a demanding one and we require –
and expect – a significant time commitment from our Directors. This
means not only preparing for and attending Board and Board
Committee meetings, but committing time to initial induction, ongoing
training and engagement with both the Executive team and with
external constituents, including shareholders and regulators. I aim to
ensure that Directors are kept fully informed about key businesses,
performance and risks and any external changes to policy or regulation
that may impact us. You can read more about this on pages 66 and 67.
Information flows
A common refrain from many directors, regardless of industry or
sector, is that the extent and volume of the material and data presented
to boards can be overwhelming. Of course, as a Board we are reliant on
the Executive team, which is operationally responsible for managing
the business, for information, but we can, and do, make our
expectations and requirements in this regard quite clear. It is critical
that the right information flows to the Board at the right time and for
that information to be at the appropriate level of detail and to be
balanced and measured. As Chairman I have sought to ensure that
information presented to the Board is balanced, thematic and clear so
that it provides the best support for open discussion. The Board has
also sought outside thinking and perspectives to stimulate debate, for
example, in 2014 external third parties have provided perspectives on
emerging risks and on growth opportunities in Africa.
Board performance
The effective performance of the Board is my responsibility as
Chairman. To assess our effectiveness, we formally evaluate the
performance of the Board, the Board Committees and the Directors
annually. We have engaged the services of an external facilitator each
year since 2004, as we feel this brings a valuable, objective perspective
to our assessment. Last year I reported to you that we intended to
agree a set of Board priorities and report on progress against these. You
can find our progress report and details of 2014’s Board effectiveness
review, including a high-level statement of the outcomes, on pages 60
and 61.
Board Committees
To ensure that the Board can devote as much time as possible to
strategic matters, oversight of risk management and control, financial
reporting, reward and succession and talent is delegated to specific
Board Committees. This ensures that each of these important areas is
subject to an appropriate level of scrutiny. The Board Committee
Chairmen report on the following pages how each Board Committee
discharged its responsibilities in 2014 and the material matters they
considered.
Looking ahead
This is my final report to you as Chairman, as I will retire from the Board
at the conclusion of the AGM on 23 April 2015. I would like to take this
opportunity to thank my Board colleagues – both present and former
– for the unstinting support and assistance they have given me,
through their contribution on the Board and Board Committees and
more widely, during my period as Chairman. In particular, I would like
to thank Sir John Sunderland, who also retires from the Board at the
conclusion of the AGM, for his dedicated service to Barclays over the
past 10 years through what has been one of the most eventful periods
in our long history. As I hand over to my successor, John McFarlane,
Barclays is on the way to becoming leaner, stronger and better-
balanced, with a clear strategy in place to deliver higher profits, returns
and growth, with lower costs and lower earnings volatility. I wish my
Board colleagues every success for the future.
Sir David Walker
Chairman
2 March 2015
What we did in 2014
Chairman’s Introduction
Governance: Directors’ report