Michael D. Moberly, Principal, Founder kpstrat and ‘Business Intangible Asset Blog – Business Intangible Asset Strategies and Risk Mitigator

For go fast, go hard, go viral, go global businesses, intangible asset strategists and risk mitigators are obliged to serve asroutine fixtures in board rooms…

• to offer perspective – insight to issues, ventures, and/or transactions, etc., in which collections – collaborations of proprietarily developed – held intangible assets will be – are in play, and likely at risk.

Those to whom readers may speak and offer counsel on matters related to business things intangible, our audiences are (fiduciarily) obliged to already recognize that…

1. 70+% of their business’s valuation, sources of revenue, competitiveness, and sustainability (irrespective of sector) lie in – emerge directly from introducing the right intangible assets, at the right time, in the right place, at the right cost.
2. business’s intangible assets materialize in various forms, contexts, and applications of intellectual, structural, and relationship capital.

Unfortunately, however, overlooking, underestimating, or dismissing either business operation – economic reality, occurs far too regularly.

A significant percentage of my engagements – consultations (as business intangible asset strategist and risk mitigator) could be legitimately characterized as ‘reactive’, not-so-much ‘proactive’ (as much preferred) that is, a…

• significant risk is considered (by a business’s leadership) to be looming – poised to publicly materialize and cascade to…
• undermine – bring suspect to the reputation – image – goodwill – stature, etc., built, held, and enjoyed by a business via its products, brands, services, and operating culture for delivering same.

Experientially, I routinely review + endeavor to practice the following (obligations, responsibilities) before entering ‘a board room’, which I believe are applicable to all circumstances, regardless of one’s professional expertise…

• Take time to reflect on, what ‘this board’ should be interested in + (fiduciarily) obliged, to hear you say, in your capacity, if asked…

• Check our ego at the door, along with any inclination to be condescending…

• If we have not received a specific ‘heads up’, (even though the circumstance – reason underlying the request for our appearance, may seem obvious), avoid presuming ‘all familiarity’ with this predicament, or how they may perceive it, or how they may prefer to address it…

• It matters how – the way, and why board members may (individually, collectively) ‘frame – speak about’ a particular issue (subject, topic, or risk, etc.)…

• Recognize others who are present ‘in the board room’ who hold their own professional, experiential, and positional expertise…

• If asked, respectfully describe – explain our presence, wholly absent a ‘sales pitch’. That’s probably already been done, otherwise, we may not have been invited…

• Never admonish for what may have already occurred, i.e., the materialization of a risk, etc., or what could occur as a consequence…

• Avoid inclinations to ‘dramatize’ a current – past circumstance with ‘worst case scenarios’ and try to apply it to the present circumstance…

• Seldom, if ever, are board rooms receptive – amenable to ‘tutorials’…
• Consider what your presence in a board room could represent – signal (near and long term), e.g., to benefit others who may follow us…
• Be prepared to offer + defend sound (plausible, reasonable, feasible, doable) options and perspectives and provide experiential synopsis of examples, outcomes, and potential (solution) paths for their consideration…
•  If permitted, note – recall ‘who says what and how they said it’ (in board room discussions in which we are present) and consider referencing same, in our responses. (Before doing so, ensure it is the same issue, and that our reference to it is in the same context which it was conveyed)…
• Consider ‘what we may hear’ uttered in a board room, may be uttered slightly differently outside a board room…
• Recognize how others (in a board room) conceive – perceive – describe particular-risks, i.e., how-why they materialized, their significance and impact, etc., may be experientially, generationally, positionally, and ideologically influenced…
• Avoid offering subjective quantification of risk vulnerabilities – probabilities. Instead, endeavor to draw board’s attention to business criticalities, i.e., adverse effects, should particular – risks materialize (asymmetrically) and cascade @ keystroke speed…
• If-when a question is posed and our expertise is sought, ‘listen for – seek understanding + clarity of the question – speaker first. Avoid anticipating our response in mid-question…
• Avoid temptation – entrée to undermine – condescend to other (differing) perspectives, in our presentation or response to a question…
• Ensure our response ‘fits – answers’ the question posed…
• Avoid projecting – anticipating our presence in ‘a board room’ to be a prelude to advancement. Instead, consider ‘our presence’ serving as a possible invitation for a ‘return visit’, or a ‘follow-up’ discussion elsewhere…
• Consider the prudence of not commencing our responses to questions with ‘I’. There are alternatives…

Readers of Mr. Moberly’s – kpstrat’s ‘Business Intangible Asset Blog’ are encouraged to review and comment on other posts wherein arrays of issues related to business things intangible are experientially researched and authentically and practically expressed.