The Directors' Consortium is a joint offering by the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Stanford Law School, University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.

In light of regulatory changes and reduced public confidence, becoming an educated board director is a necessity, not an option. Board members need to understand their fiduciary, legal, and ethical oversight responsibilities-the bar has been raised for all directors. As a director, what sorts of questions should you ask management or outside experts? What level of expertise should you bring to an audit or a finance committee? What should shareholders expect from you as a director; what should you expect from management? How can you ensure that the governance decisions you make are best for the company?

The Directors' Consortium offers even experienced directors the benefit of a research-based, comprehensive approach to the complex decisions that board members must make. Taught by faculty from accounting, finance, law, public policy, and strategic management, this program will help you build a "best practices" framework for thinking about and making informed board decisions.

Key Takeaways

• Increased understanding of directors' roles and responsibilities in the current corporate governance environment
• Frameworks and strategies to help directors make critical decisions about corporate strategy, CEO evaluation and succession, compensation, financial policy, and financial reporting
• Frameworks for legal and prudent strategies to help boards navigate in today's litigious environment

Optional Finance Day: Financial Accounting Foundations March 2, 2010

An optional full-day session at the beginning of the program provides an excellent foundation in finance and accounting basics for those with limited financial backgrounds or for those who would like a concentrated refresher from a board-level perspective. Those who are unfamiliar with basic accounting principles, such as the relationships among the balance sheet, the income statement, and the statement of cash flows, should consider attending the optional finance and accounting basics day. The optional Finance Day, offered March 2, 2010, will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 5:00p.m.

Program dates, fees, and faculty are subject to change. If a program is cancelled, Stanford will refund the program tuition in full but is not responsible for travel, accommodations or other expenses incurred by the participant.