The “G” in ESG stands for “governance.” ESG is of course of one of the most au courant topics in the corporate and securities world, and the inclusion of governance as one of the three ESG pillars inferentially suggests that governance is a new – or at least newly relevant – topic. The reality is, however, that governance is a perennial topic. Its relevance has never diminished, and it remains as important as ever. However, principles of corporate governance do evolve with changing times. It is this evolution of corporate governance that is at the heart of a new book on the topic.

The book, which is entitled “Corporate Governance: Understanding the Board-Management Relationship,” and was written by H. Stephen Grace, Jr., Ph.D, Founder and President of H.S. Grace & Company, Inc.; Suzanne Gilbert, Member Board of Advisors of Grace & Co. Consultancy, Inc.; Joseph P. Monteleone, Esq, Principal Catamount Services, LLC; and S. Lawrence Prendergast, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Turrell Fund, explores the values-based origin of governance principles; examines the recent progression of governance concepts and considers several recent circumstances that explain the changing concepts; and reviews some of the practical implications of these changing concepts and principles. The book, more information about which can be found here, is a useful and readable summary of current understandings and best practices in corporate governance.Continue Reading Book Review: Corporate Governance: Understanding the Board-Management Relationship

Corporate directors and managers have broad responsibilities to oversee their company’s operations. Among the most important items for these executives to monitor are the company’s operational and capital cash flows. In following guest post, H. Stephen Grace, Jr., Suzanne H. Gilbert, S. Lawrence Prendergast, and Joseph P. Montelone, the importance of corporate executives’ oversight of cash flows cannot be overstated – it is, the authors suggest, “the most critical indicator of a company’s ability to survive.” Steve Grace is President and Founder of H.S. Grace & Company, Inc.,; Suzanne Gilbert is a veteran corporate executive with over 30 years of experience with the Interpublic Group of Companies (IPG); Larry Prendergast is Chairman of the Turrell Fund and serves on the advisory boards of several investment funds, including JPMorgan; and Joe Monteleone is a Partner at the Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby LLP law firm. A version of this article previously was published on ABA’s Business Law Today site (here). I would like to thank the authors for allowing me to publish their article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors of interest to this blog’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is the authors’ article. Continue Reading Guest Post: Monitoring Cash Flows: The Board, the CLO, and the CFO