The Hub January 2021, the monthly newsletter from Independent Directors’ Databank wishes you a very happy and peaceful New Year 2021...

The featured stories in various sections cover regulatory updates, corporate actions and experience sharing by Independent Directors.

Year 2020 dominated by Covid19 pandemic had unprecedented impacts on socio-economic levels across the globe. It had tougher Boardroom decision constraints ranging over a series of considerations that either never existed or evolved within a very short span – aligned with need of hours!

Setting in the Hub – January 2021 ushers “Emerging Paradigm of Corporate Governance in 2021”.It glances through intense pressure on corporate decision makers, challenges boards and business leaders during Covid19 and hopes board’s ability to deliberate trails and learnings of 2020 as a thoughtful convergence on considerations of 2021.

Vignettes has an article “My experiments as an independent director” on a note how independent directors think and feel about their work, experience pleasure and anxiety, operating on particular values or ethics, their function in a context to exert power and affected by power...

The author shares his accounts of practices in a storytelling manner, covering areas relevant to working, board members and other governance professionals that transformed the financials of a PSU in steel sector from RED to GREEN..

Regulatory Worktop, shares the key updates about, a) Amendment in Companies (Compromises, Arrangements and Amalgamations) Rule, 2016 in Interest of Minority Shareholders, b) Additional relaxations to independent directors for Online Proficiency Test, c) Ease in inflation target for RBI to help push growth, d) RBI’s relaxation for stringent dividend distribution formulae for NBFCs and e) RBI’s Statement on Development and Regulatory Polices…..

Regulators Eye focus on the key updates relating to a) Roles of Independent Directors to ensure Companies functionality in Socially responsible manner, b) Good Governance role in Economic Recovery, c) Need of simplify structure of Corporate Governance Housekeeping, d) Correlation between Strong Corporate Purpose and Improved Financial results and e) Impact of deferment of CARO 2020 from the point of view of CFOs, Auditors .

Events Expo showcase relevant national and global upcoming events, programs, workshops, conferences, etc. for participation of the members. This issue covers a program on “Role of the Chairman and Independent Directors of the Board” of IIM-B and “ISB Program on Women Leadership”

Global Events, suggested are “IOD Role of the Director and the Board 2021” and “IMD Program on HIGH PERFORMANCE BOARDS (HPB)”.