“We recently engaged with Board Excellence to perform an external review of the performance of our Board. Under the guidance of Ros O’Shea, Board Excellence delivered a comprehensive assessment that was professional, rigorous, and fair. Universally, our Directors had affirming comments about their interviews with Ros. I found that Ros was particularly adept in bringing forward best practices that will help the performance of our Board as we move forward. The approach taken was not cookie cutter in any fashion. Board Excellence tailored our assessment to our Industry and our circumstances. I have no reservations in recommending Board Excellence to others.”
“We selected Board Excellence to assess the performance of the board of Tusla – the Child and Family Agency. We found their methodology thorough, professional and probing and their delivery efficient and on time. Jonathan Westrup, the lead assessor, quickly grasped the sensitivity and complexity of our sector and their Report was both insightful and balanced. We are working through their recommendations which board members believe will further strengthen governance and enhance concentration on medium and longer-term strategic direction”
“Global Shares engaged the services of Board Excellence to provide external evaluation and strategic consultancy to our Board and Executive team. Kieran’s collaborative style and easy manner proved key to positive engagement with all board members, which in turn enabled a thorough review of the board structure, its governance and effectiveness. The recommendations and findings presented to us by Kieran, were clear and structured. We would highly recommend Kieran and Board Excellence to any Board that wishes to improve their board performance, composition, and corporate governance.”
“Kieran Moynihan of Board Excellence completed a very comprehensive review of our board structure and practices. The nature of the engagement was thorough and forthright but at the same time commercial and pragmatic. The insights and advice received from Kieran will enable our board to perform at a higher level and to work more effectively with management to deliver ambitious targets for our business. I would highly recommend the engagement of Kieran and Board Excellence in assessing a board and advising on how best to deliver enhanced board effectiveness.”
“Board Excellence, through Jonathan Westrup, completed a thoroughly professional Board evaluation of the Board of Management of Oberstown Children Detention Campus. In addition to identifying good practice and areas of improvement for the Board, the evaluation also provided some entirely fresh perspectives on our approach, linking recommendations to the organisation’s strategic direction in a most helpful manner. The evaluation exceeded expectations in every respect and I could not recommend Jonathan highly enough.”
“Ifac is Irelands farming, food and agribusiness specialist professional service Firm. We employ 475 people in more than 30 regional offices across the country. We engaged Board Excellence to help us recruit a high calibre independent non-executive director (INED) to join our Board. From the outset Kieran and Anne-Marie invested time in understanding our business and our needs. They used this knowledge to create the specification for the role and brought us a stellar group of INED candidates. The process was detailed, professional, open, and transparent. Kieran and Anne-Marie were excellent throughout. Board
Excellence did a great job for Ifac and we highly recommend them.”
“David O’Callaghan of Board Excellence was engaged to independently evaluate the governance and board effectiveness of Core Credit Union. Our board has previously worked with David on another project earlier this year. David has an excellent deep knowledge and understanding of the Credit Union sector as well as the dynamics and intricacies of board structures. David’s role was to provide a high-level governance evaluation of the board, structures, committees, performance and the relationship with senior management and CEO. David took a hands-on approach meeting with all relevant parties and observing a range of meetings. This resulted in the composition of a comprehensive and excellent final report. We have already implemented a number of his recommendations and we would consider that David’s contribution has given us the tools to improve our overall performance as a board.”
“The Board of Directors (Council) of CPA Ireland engaged the expertise of Board Excellence to ensure that the Board members, individually and collectively, understood the characteristics of a high performing board and how to sustain high performance. The CPA Ireland Directors found Board Excellence to be experienced, engaging, knowledgeable and challenging and, very importantly, enjoyable. The collective
experience within Board Excellence ensures that Directors are presented with real world examples against which to benchmark performance. In summary, Board Excellence are excellent.”
“During 2021 and 2022, Board Excellence supported Cork Chamber in developing our Strategic Plan 2022-2025 and in updating our Code of Governance. The insights provide by Pat McGrath were invaluable in steering the Chamber towards a new strategic plan and a complete review of our governance arrangements. We have no hesitation in recommending Board Excellence and Pat McGrath for similar work.”
“We were delighted with our experience working with Kieran and Board Excellence to help us recruit top talent to our newly formed Board of Directors. Right from the beginning of the process, Kieran worked with us to firstly understand how a successful Board should be structured. He then helped us identify our needs and clearly define the job specs. Board Excellence’s network is incredible, and they connected us with some fantastic individuals who all would have been suitable for our Board. Over the process this was narrowed down, and Kieran helped us every step of the way. What was most impressive was that they understood our brand and business and matched our passion to find the right Board members to help the business grow. For any early-stage business who is looking to start a Board then I would highly recommend Board Excellence.”
“Following a tender process IFI engaged Board Excellence to complete its external review of the effectiveness of the Board of Inland Fisheries Ireland. Eileen Cole conducted an in depth review of the information flowing to the Board and Board governance policies and procedures. She administered questionnaires and conducted individual interviews with Board and Senior Management Team members. Her final report was delivered and presented following this review. Ms Cole worked closely with the Chair and Board Secretary during this project. We were very satisfied with the breadth and depth of Eileen Cole’s experience and the quality of the final report. Eileen brought excellent insight and knowledge to the process and we would hope to have the opportunity of working with Board Excellence in the future.”
“We engaged Board Excellence for our external Board evaluation which is a key part of our governance arrangements. From the outset I was so impressed with Kieran Moynihan’s responsiveness, clear and thorough approach to the evaluation. Kieran’s expertise gained over many years was very evident as we went through the evaluation process and he was very insightful in understanding the complexity of a charitable organisation operating in the challenging and dynamic healthcare sector. Kieran was a pleasure to work with and he couldn’t have been more helpful to me throughout the evaluation process.”
“We approached Board Excellence at a critical stage in the company’s development, undertaking a large transaction which would platform the business for growth over the coming years. We were anxious to upskill our PLC board with commensurate non-executive director experience. Board Excellence have an incredible reach into the professional marketplace and the ability to find the best board placements is undoubted as a result. I would have no hesitation in recommending Board Excellence as a best in class Non-executive director search partner.”
“We engaged the services of Ros O’Shea to assist with a Corporate Governance Review of our organisation. While we were a little daunted at the prospect of such a project, Ros took all of the fear away and made it feel like a very straightforward, simple project. Ros is extremely easy to work with and is very practical in her approach, she kept us very much on track, giving us the nudge when we needed it, to ensure we met our agreed timelines. We are now in a very good place with an updated Corporate Governance Handbook, new board and committee structures and a revised Constitution. I particularly liked the fact that Ros ensured that the review was proportionate to the size and scale of our organisation and that we did not end up with a large infrastructure that would in time become unmanageable and ineffective. A huge amount was achieved over a relatively short space of time, we couldn’t have done it without Ros’s expertise and support, and I couldn’t recommend Ros enough. I look forward to working with Ros again in the future.”
“We engaged Board Excellence to carry out an external evaluation of our Board and Standing Committees and a review of our governance framework documentation. This review, which happens every three years, included questionnaires and individual meetings with all of our Board members, Board Standing Committee members and Senior Leadership Team. The review was thorough and insightful with some great feedback and recommendations. We highly recommend the services of Board Excellence.”
“Kieran Moynihan carried out an external evaluation of the HIQA Board at the latter end of 2019. Because of Kieran’s experience in the wider business world, he was able to offer a unique perspective on Board operations.”
“Conjura approached Board Excellence to seek help finding a board chair in advance of a growth funding round. Several high-quality candidates were sourced by Board Excellence and following a series of interviews we were delighted to secure our first-choice candidate. Throughout the process everything was run efficiently allowing me to concentrate on choosing the right fit. Not only did Board Excellence find the candidates and run the process but they also provided invaluable advice throughout.”
“MAAS is a small precision engineering company with big ambition. To realise our ambition we wanted to develop a formal board structure but were unsure as to how to source a Non-Executive Director with the right skills and experience. Board Excellence specialises in this area. Anne-Marie worked closely with us to understand exactly what we were looking for in a director, taking account of our scale, our culture and our ambition. She identified several very strong candidates and guided us through the process to a successful appointment. We were delighted with this service and would highly recommend to any company.”
“Board Excellence ran an in-house workshop for our Board of Directors on the subject of board best practices and impartiality. The planning and preparation for the workshop, coupled with the delivery of the training on the day were exceptional. We worked closely with Kieran throughout, which ensured the content was useful, relevant, and it gave us further best practice to incorporate into our general board practices and impartiality committee procedures”
“Pat McGrath, Board Excellence, carried out a governance review of Open Application Consulting (OpenApp) in 2019 and subsequently worked with us in developing our Strategic Plan 2021-2024. Since then he has provided very valuable inputs as a Board Advisor over the past two years. The Board of OpenApp is very appreciative of Pat’s inputs.”
“We engaged Board Excellence to provide strategic consultancy advice to the company board and executive team. The role involved reviewing & strengthening our board processes and board information model, executive reporting systems, strengthening our corporate governance, supporting our executive team in key areas such as strategy & risk as well as helping the board team embrace leading international best practices in board effectiveness & performance. Working with the Board Excellence team was enjoyable & rewarding and their unique ability to listen and to ask the tough questions in a constructive manner helped us identify the challenges facing us as a board team and as an executive team in addressing our own organisational weaknesses in sustaining planned company growth.”
“Cork Simon Community conducted an externally facilitated board review with Board Excellence. Board Excellence were outstanding in guiding us through the review process. The board review process shone a light on key areas where Cork Simon Community could add value. The board review process was very thorough and the board of Cork Simon Community found it to be very worthwhile and enlightening.”
“From the very first discussion with Kieran Moynihan, Board Excellence were adding value to the Irish Hospice Foundation. Kieran went above what was expected at every stage, his effort and energy combined with Kieran’s expertise have delivered what I believe is a superb report which clearly sets out where we are doing well and where and how we can improve. I believe the process and the final report have the potential to be a significant catalyst in IHF upping its game, thereby moving the dial in improving the experience of death dying and bereavement in Ireland. We particularly appreciate the access to him as a mentor on board performance for 12 months after the report. I would wholeheartedly recommend Board Excellence to any Chair and Board looking to do an honest and thorough review and take their board to the next level.”
“The external board evaluation Board Excellence conducted for our organisation shone a light on some critical opportunities for improvement as a board. Their approach is collaborative, thorough, insightful, engaging and professional. The fact Board Excellence stay engaged to support the implementation of the recommendations is a real value add for boards. I would definitely appoint Board Excellence for any future board evaluations.”
“Ros approached this engagement using a structured and collaborative style and her easy manner ensured constructive and positive engagement from the board and senior management. Her review was comprehensive and included fresh insights and perspectives on our approach. Ros’s wealth of experience coupled with her structured approach ensured the company has a well-informed set of pragmatic recommendations that can be implemented to strengthen our current corporate governance arrangements. In addition, Board Excellence advice and guidance on the implementation of those recommendation is an invaluable part of their servicing offering. The evaluation exceeded our expectations, and we would highly recommend Ros O’Shea to any company looking to improve their corporate governance framework.”
“Our recent external board evaluation process with Board Excellence was a very thorough process, assessing our board effectiveness and performance in a wide range of areas. Kieran’s approach, while challenging and setting the bar high for the board, was very engaging, constructive and warmly embraced by the board. Kieran went the extra mile to understand our board, our dynamics as a board team, our strengths to build upon and identify opportunities to improve. We worked closely with Kieran to develop a practical roadmap based on the evaluation recommendations to drive sustained improvement in our board effectiveness, leveraging the deep experience and best practices Board Excellence have developed and we are already seeing the benefits of this. For any board looking to select a board evaluation practice to provide a robust honest evaluation of the board that adds genuine value, I warmly recommend Board Excellence.”
“Cirencester Friendly takes Corporate Governance very seriously and we undertake a triennial external review of the effectiveness of our Board. For our most recent review process we partnered with Board Excellence to conduct an independent review. The approach they took was thorough and robust and we worked closely with Paul George and Kieran Moynihan to produce an output that was practical and proportionate. The report contained a good range of findings and recommendations that recognised our Board was already effective but can be made even more so. We saw Board Excellence’s commitment to include follow-up work over a 12-month period as a key differentiator in the market. I would be happy to recommend Board Excellence to organisations looking for an independent and objective assessment of their Board.”
“Paul George did a great job for the NAO Board. He conducted our board effectiveness review with tact and rigour, bringing considerable experience and insight to the process and enabling us to become an even more effective Board as a result of the process.”
“I would certainly recommend Board Excellence to carry out a robust and thorough effectiveness review. Their UK lead Partner Paul George was quick to understand the issues and presented us with an excellent report with some very clear and pertinent recommendations.”
“As a Development Finance Institution (DFI), DEG relies on the positive impact Nominee Directors can provide to our partner companies all over the world. Board Excellence has been a great partner in this, providing extensive expertise on board work through their Director training as well as by offering valuable insights on good board practices in general. Always open to adjusting the programme according to nominee Directors’ needs and interests, they have developed a training which addresses all areas of board work relevant to DEG’s Nominee Directors. We look forward to continuing working with Board Excellence in the coming years.”
“FMO, the Dutch Development Bank, highly values training of its (potential) nominee directors to support them in the proper performance of their board role thus enabling them to positively contribute to board effectiveness and – dynamics. In Board Excellence we found a diligent, knowledgeable and experienced training institute performing a dedicated nominee director training highly appreciated by the participants.”
“Our decision to choose Board Excellence to run our External Evaluation turns out to have been an excellent one ! Kieran Moynihan’s report was thorough, balanced, comprehensive and excellent value. More importantly it was insightful. It pulled no punches and provided candid feedback that was hard hitting but accurate. At the same time it drew out an array of very positive points too. We all greatly appreciated the directness of Kieran’s comments, are thoroughly pleased we have done the exercise and are relishing our next steps. Thanks Board Excellence – an excellent job !”
“Our Board evaluation process has done just what it should do, which is challenge us as a Board and make us think about ways to improve our performance for all of our stakeholders. The Board Excellence team ran a well-structured process, ensuring that multiple data inputs were used and put into the right context. They partnered with us collectively and individually from beginning to end of the evaluation, communicated clearly with us throughout and definitely went the extra mile to ensure that we got real value out of the evaluation. One of the main reasons we selected them was their excellent knowledge of, and insights into, Board dynamics and performance; this proved to be very helpful and informative when reflecting on our own performance. They are not afraid to address the elephants in the room and to challenge everything, which is the only way to make real progress. I would definitely work with them again.”
“We selected Board Excellence to work with us on our recent external board evaluation because we wanted Independent and practical advice on how to be a more effective board. Kieran Moynihan provided us with just that! His report was extremely thorough, pulled no punches and guided us on the actions to work on that would have the most impact for our Charity Board. Kieran also supported us with feedback to our senior leadership team which was important for us as they are critical to our overall board effectiveness. We have already seen the benefits of this work and have really enjoyed working with Kieran, who has been a critical friend to us, as well as advisor and coach!”
“British Canoeing is an organisation that is serious about good governance and striving to ensure that we operate as effectively as possible. In our search for best practice, we selected and worked with Board Excellence to help us on our journey. They were outstanding in their work for us. Their expertise was exceptional, but it was the manner in which they worked with us that I appreciated enormously. They were frank, well informed, had access to benchmark data and were knowledgeable about and sensitive to the context in which NGBs and member organisations work. We did not want a simple test of compliance or measurement against others. We wanted advice and guidance on how to get better. They presented sound advice, well thought through options and an offer to work with us on an implementation plan. They have served us exceedingly well.”
“Board Excellence have demonstrated a deep expertise in board dynamics and the key factors that impact a board’s effectiveness and performance. We place a major emphasis on embracing board best practices in our investee companies. Board Excellence have developed a strong, practical framework which provides assistance to boards to improve their overall effectiveness and performance. They have been an excellent partner to work with and we look forward to building our relationship further”
“The Board evaluation we have undertaken with Board Excellence has been a very powerful experience. Kieran combined a very comprehensive and structured evaluation process with a tailored approach that met the specific needs of Robinson. He listened for understanding and context, but was not afraid to challenge us to ensure we did not miss any opportunities to improve and to become an even higher performing Board. In summary, the Board Excellence evaluation experience has been pragmatic, collaborative, informative and realistically challenging; importantly, it is already adding substantial value for our Board”
“The Governance and Culture Review for the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries touched on a wide range of issues from process through to behaviours. Board Excellence carried out a very thorough diligence with a full range of stakeholders and, despite the complexity of the picture, quickly identified the key issues. Where they needed to dig deeper, they did so quickly and sympathetically leaving virtually all interviewees feeling that their input had mattered. The conclusions were clear and are already being put into practice. Though it is still early days the signs are encouraging that Board Excellence have given us a platform and a roadmap from which to build.”
“Efficient and effective boards are an important ingredient in managing and developing high growth businesses. We have worked with Board Excellence to great effect both training our own team in how best to maximise the effectiveness of boards but also with a number of our portfolio companies and chairmen. Board Excellence have great experience and are able to deliver the lessons learned in a coherent and digestible way. We are very happy to be working with them”
“Board Excellence supported me on our recent Annual Board Chair and Trustee evaluations. I want to put on record my gratitude and appreciation of Kieran’s contribution to our appraisals. It resulted in a more comprehensive and focused set of goals for each Board Member. His input also provided an independent assessment of Lewisham Homes Appraisal of the Board based on his knowledge and experience of working with a wide variety of Boards outside of our sector. Having reviewed the testimonials on Board Excellence’s website I was confident that any analysis that Kieran made would be honest and uncompromising. Therefore the comments he made about Lewisham Homes’ Board were highly valued by me and provided some assurance that Lewisham Homes’ Board is one which is positive, competent and made up of independent thinkers who are focused on the best outcomes for its stakeholders.”
“Kieran Moynihan has provided mentoring services to me over the last 12 months in support of my role as chairman of the board of a private equity backed business. Drawing on a wealth of his own boardroom experience and a state-of-the-art knowledge of best practices, I find his down to earth observations invaluable in helping me to be effective in my chairman role. His advice on tactical aspects of managing and leading a board has invariably been spot on, while his overall focus is always on the prize of helping me develop a high performing board that adds real value to the organisation. I warmly recommend him.”
“Having postponed an external evaluation in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Nomination Committee decided to proceed with the Board and Committee evaluation in 2021. Although the evaluation was undertaken in line with social distancing guidelines meaning that interviews and the observation of meetings were undertaken online, this did not detract from the scope or the depth of Mr Moynihan’s evaluation. The evaluation was very thorough throughout, from the breadth of the documentation which Mr Moynihan reviewed to the detail of the evaluation report and its recommendations. A factor in selecting Board Excellence was their provision of follow-on support to assist both in the implementation of recommendations and our subsequent internal board evaluation. We would happily recommend Mr Moynihan and Board Excellence.”
“Following an extensive trawl of the Board Evaluation consultancy market, we engaged Board Excellence to complete our governance evaluation. Kieran’s easy manner and responsiveness greatly assisted with engagement and made the process an enjoyable one. The final report was thorough and detailed and a step-up from previous exercises we have completed. It has provided us with a set of practical suggestions and aspirational goals to incorporate into our governance framework and practices. We very much welcome the additional 12 months of support from Kieran and expect to keep him busy!”
