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What We Do

Board Advisory Services

Shareholders and society as a whole now expect much more from boards of directors, as part of increased scrutiny of our institutions. In addition, there is a growing demand from senior executives for their boards to provide judgment and wisdom on how to “do things better,” taking advantage of global and technological opportunities while avoiding traps and ensuring growth and sustainability.

At Egon Zehnder, we welcome this higher level of scrutiny and stand ready to work with you as partners in building the best boards of directors possible. Through more than 3,600 international board-consulting assignments in the past five years, we have accumulated insight on a broad range of topics that boards will encounter. Our experience goes well beyond executive search to build on nearly 50 years of learning how board directors can have the greatest impact, both individually and collectively.

We take particular pride in our deep experience helping boards of directors source and develop leadership talent, both on the board and in CEO succession projects. With 65 global offices in 36 countries, we are able to identify, assess, and develop director candidates all over the world. The collective expertise of our consultants — all of whom had significant careers in business before coming to our firm — allows us to better understand and anticipate your talent requirements in this area. Our wide reach also enables us to be creative when it comes to talent solutions; you can expect to meet candidates who don’t show up in traditional databases and who bring diversity of all kinds.

Our board work has three main components. With each of them, we leverage our unique global reach and equal partnership compensation model to make sure that everything we do has a singular focus: bringing better leadership to the boardroom. We invite you to experience true partnership as you build a more effective board.



Board Advisory Services Consultants

Ashley Summerfield

Ashley Summerfield

London

Global Lead

Ashley Summerfield leads Egon Zehnder’s global CEO and Board Consulting Practice. He is a trusted advisor to scores of prestigious clients around the… Read more

Charles Gray

Charles Gray

New York

US Lead

Charles “Chuck” Gray, based in New York, co-leads Egon Zehnder's U.S. CEO and Board Practice. Read more

Michael Portland

Michael Portland

Chicago

Michael Portland is a member of Egon Zehnder’s CEO and Board Consulting practices and has deep expertise in CEO and C-suite succession, executive… Read more

Alex Santos

Alex Santos

Chicago

Based in Chicago, Alex Santos focuses on helping clients recruit general managers and functional leaders as well as assess their internal talent. Read more

Patrick Robinson

Patrick Robinson

Chicago

Pat Robinson, based in Chicago, is a core member of Egon Zehnder’s Services and Industrial Practices. He is also active in the firms Supply… Read more

Meg Reynolds

Meg Reynolds

Chicago

Based in Chicago, Meg Reynolds is active in Egon Zehnder’s Technology Practice, focusing on the communications and enterprise technology sectors. Read more

Karl Alleman

Karl Alleman

Chicago

Karl Alleman has a long track record of helping large multinationals, family-owned enterprises, and private equity firms solve their most important… Read more

Jessica Watson

Jessica Watson

Washington, D.C.

Jessica Watson is one of the co-founders of Egon Zehnder’s Washington, DC office and currently leads the firm’s Health Practice for the Americas… Read more

Christoph Wollersheim

Christoph Wollersheim

Washington, D.C.

Christoph Wollersheim, based in Washington, D.C., supports clients as a member of Egon Zehnder’s Services Practice and Artificial Intelligence… Read more

Olli Laurén

Olli Laurén

Washington, D.C.

Olli Lauren serves as a senior adviser in Washington DC. He is also a member of Egon Zehnder’s Global Machinery & Industrial Technology practice. Read more

James Stark

James Stark

Atlanta

James Stark, based in Atlanta, is active in Egon Zehnder’s CFO and Audit Chair, Industrial, and Private Capital practices. He is passionate about… Read more

Jeff Otto

Jeff Otto

Atlanta, Palo Alto

Jeff Otto leads Egon Zehnder’s North America Semiconductor Practice. He leverages his deep industry and technical experience to advise clients and… Read more

Ian Bolin

Ian Bolin

Atlanta, Detroit

Ian Bolin, based in Atlanta and Detroit, leads Egon Zehnder’s Global Automotive and Mobility Practice. Read more

Benito Cachinero

Benito Cachinero

New York

Benito Cachinero-Sánchez, based in Philadelphia, is an active member of Egon Zehnder’s Leadership Solutions and Human Resources Practice Groups. Read more

Dan Phelan

Dan Phelan

New York

Dan Phelan is a Senior Advisor at Egon Zehnder. He draws on over 40 years’ experience as a senior executive and board director to counsel clients. Read more

Anne-Claire Monod

Anne-Claire Monod

New York

Anne-Claire Monod is a sought-out advisor to industrial businesses who has developed trusted relationships with Fortune 500 corporations as well as… Read more


Thought Leadership | Board Advisory Services

Read more insights
The Path to the Boardroom

The Path to the Boardroom

A practical guide to landing your first corporate board seat. Interviewing for First-Time Board Service: read successful strategies for meeting the unique challenges of… Read more

2022/23 Global Board Diversity Tracker: Who's Really on Board?

2022/23 Global Board Diversity Tracker: Who's Really on Board?

For over 18 years, Egon Zehnder has been tracking boardroom diversity around the world. The 2022–2023 Global Board Diversity Tracker captures the progress that… Read more

Cyber Stakes Climb as Nation-States Target U.S. Companies

Cyber Stakes Climb as Nation-States Target U.S. Companies

As cyber risks rise, board members must have a level of cybersecurity knowledge in the same way they do financials, Egon Zehnder's Will Houston… Read more

Exploring How CEOs and Boards Can Escape the Growth Curse

Exploring How CEOs and Boards Can Escape the Growth Curse

Chasing growth can derail even the most well-meaning CEOs—and their companies along with them. We spoke with Yves Doz and Keeley Wilson, authors of… Read more

More women make it on to US company boards but fewer reach the C-suite

More women make it on to US company boards but fewer reach the C-suite

Egon Zehnder's Chuck Gray highlights that diversity remains a priority for boards and how a drop in CEO diversity impacts board diversity. (Note that… Read more

Building Board Resilience in the Consumer Industry

Building Board Resilience in the Consumer Industry

Insights from our Inaugural Consumer Board Retreat Read more

Why CEOs and Boards Should Prioritize Investing in their Senior Sales Leaders

Why CEOs and Boards Should Prioritize Investing in their Senior Sales Leaders

Chief Sales Officers have been driving incremental growth. Now it’s time for CEOs and Boards to apply that same level of rigor to the… Read more

Pacific Northwest's Influence

Pacific Northwest's Influence

Phyllis Campbell, Former Chair of JPMorgan Chase, Pacific Northwest Region, talks career, board diversity and succession planning. Read more

Boards Directors Are Going Digital. Why You Should Too.

Boards Directors Are Going Digital. Why You Should Too.

The ‘digital board’ has become a prerequisite for securing long-term success, effectively managing talent, and mitigating risks within the company. Read more

Distilling ESG drivers of enterprise value and the role of corporate boards

Distilling ESG drivers of enterprise value and the role of corporate boards

Corporate boards significantly influence the perceptions through their oversight duties of how much enterprise value creation comes from non-financial resources - many of which… Read more

The Role of the Board in Crisis

The Role of the Board in Crisis

Egon Zehnder’ Directors Development Program held a session on this topic led by Sunil Mehta, former Chair of PNB and Yes Bank, in which… Read more

Regulators' Perspective for Boards

Regulators' Perspective for Boards

One of the sessions of Egon Zehnder’s Directors Development Program looked at board governance from the perspective of the regulator, as well as how… Read more

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