On Board The Insider’s Guide to Surviving Life in the Boardroom, reviewed

By Simon Cocking, review of On Board The Insider’s Guide to Surviving Life in the Boardroom by John Tusa. Available from Bloomsbury here. Published: 20-08-2020 Hardback
ISBN: 9781472975997 Bloomsbury Business

John Tusa invites us behind the closed doors of the boardroom with seven case studies of major arts and cultural institutions from around the world. Tusa interviews major participants including contemporary artist Grayson Perry, Neil MacGregor (Director of the British Museum from 2002-2015), Lord Browne (Chief Executive of BP 1995 – 2007) and Dame Liz Forgan (board member of the Conservatoire for Dance and Drama and former Chair of Arts Council England).

Tusa explores how life on cultural and corporate boards is very similar, with many business people regarding arts boards as often being more complex than corporate boards. From personal squabbles to financial crises, Tusa shares his experiences serving on a wide variety of international boards at institutions such as the British Museum and American Public Radio. These lively life stories unveil how boards overcome deep-set divisions, appoint new members and survive in times of chaos.

On Board The Insider’s Guide to Surviving Life in the Boardroom, reviewed

Being on a board can be hard work, draining, unappreciated, and often frustrating. At the same time when a board performs it’s duties effectively and appropriately, it can often achieve wonderful things, and / or avoid terrible outcomes too. Tusa’s board experience is impressive and wide. He wisely, and memorably draws on this experience in the insights and anecdotes he shares.

We read this book over a few days and found ourselves often reflecting on and referring back to examples and experiences that Tusa shares in the book. At many times the board faced important stress points, on some occasions it went over the cliff and made terrible decisions, at other times, thankfully the right decisions were made, and potentially disastrous results were avoided.

Too many times boards are too homogenous, too similar, and too narrow minded to make the effective decisions that an organisation needs. A book like this does offer the distilled benefits of someone else’s experiences and time spent both getting it right and also comprehensively failing to do so. We found this book useful, enjoyable and would recommend it to anyone currently or planning to serve on a board.

Sir John Tusa is a British arts administrator, author, journalist and former presenter of BBC’s Newsnight. He is the co-chairman of the European Union Youth Orchestra and was formerly the managing director of the BBC World Service and the Barbican Arts Centre. As Managing Director of the BBC External Services, he set up BBC World Service Television. He is also a writer whose books include Pain in the Arts and Making a Noise: Getting it Right, Getting it Wrong in Life, the Arts and Broadcasting.

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