In this episode of On Boards, co-hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh welcome Ray Garcia, senior partner at PwC and leader of PwC's Governance Insights Center, to discuss findings from its 2026 Annual Corporate Directors Survey. Drawing on responses from more than 600 corporate directors, Garcia explores how boards can improve their effectiveness, strengthen strategic oversight and adapt to a rapidly changing business environment.
The conversation examines board assessments, cybersecurity and AI governance, the quality of information directors receive from management, and the need for more deliberate board succession planning.
Garcia emphasizes that effective boards must look beyond current performance and technical expertise to anticipate future needs, prioritize cultural fit and build the capabilities required to support their company's strategy.
Key takeaways
-
Board assessments should focus on future performance, not just past performance
-
Assessments are often treated as an annual governance exercise rather than a tool for improving board effectiveness
-
Bringing in an experienced third party to conduct individual interviews every few years can encourage greater candor and uncover issues that surveys alone may miss
-
Assessments should consider where the company expects to be in two to three years and whether the board has the capabilities to support that strategy
-
Cybersecurity is an enterprise resilience issue, not just a technical one
-
AI increases cyber risk as both companies and threat actors use the technology to strengthen their capabilities
-
Boards should conduct tabletop exercises to prepare for potential ransomware attacks and data breaches, clarifying who makes decisions, when the board gets involved and how the company communicates externally
-
Directors need sufficient fluency in cybersecurity and AI to ask management the right questions
-
Better information enables stronger strategic oversight
-
Directors may be able to challenge management more effectively if they receive clearer strategic metrics, alternative strategies, scenario planning, trade-offs and peer benchmarks.
-
Nearly 80% of surveyed directors said management could improve the materials they receive
-
Rather than presenting a predetermined answer, management should bring recommendations that give directors enough information to evaluate assumptions, consider alternatives and exercise meaningful oversight
-
Board composition and succession planning must evolve with business needs
-
More than half of surveyed directors believed at least one board member should be replaced, while 71% said boards needed stronger AI skills
-
Board succession planning should begin with the company's future strategy and the capabilities needed to execute it, rather than simply evaluating individual directors in isolation
-
Skills matrices should be living tools that evolve as business priorities change, rather than static disclosures in proxy statements
-
AI governance requires fluency, education and strategic integration
-
Boards should improve their AI fluency without assuming they necessarily need a dedicated AI expert on the board
-
Directors must understand AI's implications for strategy, risk, organizational culture and employee productivity
-
Boards should evaluate AI as an accelerator of business strategy rather than treating it as a standalone issue. Responsibility for AI strategy rests with the board, while audit or risk committees oversee associated risks
Quotes:
"Cyber is really not a technical issue for companies. It's quite frankly an enterprise resiliency issue."
"Boards that look at AI as an accelerator of the strategy and not its own as its own issue are the ones that are actually succeeding."
"The most effective boards are the ones that have built a process and capabilities and culture to continue to evolve in today's world."
Links:
2026 Annual Corporate Directors Survey
Guest Bio
As the leader of PwC's Governance Insights Center, Ray Garcia has over 34 years of experience advising Global Fortune 100/500 companies. He has held key leadership roles at PwC, including overseeing the US and Mexico Assurance Operations. Ray's expertise spans corporate governance, M&A, and ESG, among other areas. Appointed to the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy, he also serves on advisory councils at Texas A&M and Trinity University. In addition to Ray's professional pursuits, he is committed to community service as President of the 100 Club and a board member of the Coastal Conservation Association and the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation.
