PSOJ LAUNCHES REVISED CORPORATE GOVERNANCE CODE

Three years after it was first published, the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) launched its revised Corporate Governance Code and a Handbook and Tool Kit on Good Governance yesterday. The launch took place at a Round Table breakfast hosted by the PSOJ at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel.

The two-part publication is entitled “The Code on Corporate Governance (2nd Edition) 2009 – Volume 1” and the “Handbook and Tool Kit on Good Governance – Volume 2”. The new edition of the Code is intended to guide companies in implementing best practices in corporate governance in Jamaica. The companion publication, the Handbook and Tool Kit, provides guidelines, models and templates that can assist company leaders in deepening corporate governance in their organisations and businesses.

In launching the publications, which can be purchased from the PSOJ’s Secretariat, the PSOJ President observed that: “Both these documents are ‘must haves’ for companies and entities on the road to implementing Corporate Governance principles and practices.”

Speaking to an audience of over one hundred Directors, Chairpersons and senior managers in private sector companies, public bodies and non-governmental organizations, Guest Speaker Dr. Sheila Brown, Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in the Public Service, spoke on: “Good Governance and Board Leadership: Engendering Transparency and Trust”.
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Dr. Brown, a highly regarded governance expert, defined governance as “the exercise of due diligence by an oversight body, charged with stewardship of the organization’s assets, to ensure it functions in a sound and sustainable way, in accordance with its strategic goals”. She emphasised that good governance is required in all organisations that make up civil society, including public and private sector entities, NGOs, voluntary organisations, educational institutions and churches. While some companies and organisations may see the implementation of good governance as tedious, and perhaps costly initially, she urged members of the audience to start the process and to see every measure that is implemented as a series of small steps in the right direction.

Dr. Brown quoted Francis Fukuyama from his book entitled Trust: The Social Virtues and the Creation of Prosperity, noting that “A nation’s well-being, as well as its ability to compete, is conditioned by a single pervasive cultural characteristic: the level of trust inherent in the society”. She opined that “We live in an environment of diminished trust – locally and globally, however, good governance at every level in our businesses and organisations will help to rebuild the level of trust in our society”.

At the Board level, transparency, orientation, clear vision and goals, performance evaluation of the Board and attention to succession planning were cited as among the top ten governance practices which will engender trust.

In conclusion, Dr. Brown noted that with the PSOJ’s latest publications on Corporate Governance, “all organisations can contribute to Jamaica’s advancement by reviewing their governance policies and adopting new and enhanced practices that will nurture and sustain trust, and thereby help to build a well-functioning civil society with the social capital Jamaica needs to

address current challenges.”

Dr. Brown’s presentation was followed by a lively discussion period in which participants explored a number of issues, among them the matter of the process of appointment of Directors of public bodies. The CEO of the PSOJ, Sandra Glasgow shared with the audience that the Organisation would be offering a series of training programmes in governance for companies and organizations in the private and public sectors.

Please click on the link below to view Dr Brown's presentation on "Good Governance and Board Leadership - Engendering Transparency & Trust"