尸位素餐? 非执行董事真的有用吗

 　　Time is up for non-executive directors. Through successive corporate¹ crises and systemic catastrophes³, despite — and in part because of — layers of codes and regulations, independent board members have failed to do the impossible job handed to them by complacent⁴ fund managers.

　　非执行董事的时间已经到头了。在一次又一次的企业危机和系统性灾难中，尽管（在一定程度上也是因为）有层层监管法律法规，但独立董事并未能实现那些自满的基金经理们交给他们的不可能完成的任务。

　　Here is the charge sheet. Executive recklessness: still untamed. Executive enterprise: often smothered⁵. Executive pay: unchecked. Scandals and failures: recurrent. Sickly corporate cultures: unaltered. Complex operations: unmonitored. Trust in business: fragile.

　　对非执行董事的“控诉清单”如下：管理层的鲁莽行为仍然未被驯服；管理层的进取心则常常受到压制；管理层的薪酬依旧不受控制；丑闻与失败层出不穷；病态的企业文化没有改观；复杂的业务操作无人监控；外界对企业的信任非常脆弱。

　　This list is long. Directors will argue that they are not responsible for all of it. That is precisely⁶ the problem. Tighter governance has become the catch-all solution to all corporate, and some systemic, crises, with directors as useful scapegoats⁷ if things go wrong. Nobody will weep for people who sometimes earn multiples of average workers’ salaries. But non-executives are under immense pressure as part-time outsiders, overseeing driven full-time⁹ experts, who are themselves trying to control companies that are often bafflingly complex.

　　这是一个很长的清单。董事们将会辩解称，他们并不对所有这些问题负责。而这正是问题的症结所在。更严格的治理俨然已经成了所有企业危机（甚至某些系统性灾难）的万金油式解决方案，而如果进展不顺，董事们可以被方便地当作替罪羊。没有人会为薪酬有时高达普通员工数倍的人流泪。但非执行董事作为非全职外部人士承受着巨大的压力，他们要监督那些野心十足的全职专家，而这些专家自身也在摸索着控制常常复杂得令人困惑的企业。

　　A recent US study, “Are Boards Designed to Fail?”, detected many obstacles to proper oversight¹⁰. They include excessive deference¹¹ to the chief executive, who often decides when, or even whether, non-executives can visit operations and quiz managers. Then there is the sheer lack of time: here, former executives who boast of “going plural” — taking multiple directorships —should reflect that a singular focus would be more effective, if less lucrative¹². A new report from Tomorrow’s Company (“UK Business: What’s Wrong? What’s Next?”) suggests the build-up of codes and rules, plus the public’s knee-jerk attacks on directors after a corporate catastrophe², have made boards too risk averse¹³. Separately, the think-tank lists 17 topics, from audit¹⁴ to strategy, on which directors are expected to act in the 30 days a year that is all they usually devote to the job.

　　美国近期一项名为“董事会的制度设计是否注定会失败？”的研究，发现了有效控管面临的多项障碍。这其中包括对首席执行官的过度服从，首席执行官常常决定了非执行董事何时可以、甚至是否可以走访企业的运营部门并对经理们提问。此外还有严重不足的履职时间：在这个问题上，那些夸耀自己“身兼数职”的前任高管——即同时在数家企业担任董事——应该认识到集中精力将更加有效，如果对应的报酬会有所减少的话。智库Tomorrow’s Company新发表的报告《英国企业：哪里出了问题？接下来会怎样？》指出，各种规章制度的不断累积，加上公众在企业灾难发生后对董事们发起的条件反射般的攻击，导致董事会过于惧怕风险。这家智库机构另外列出17个领域，从审计到企业战略，董事们被期待每年花30天时间处理这些领域的事务，这是他们每年通常用于履行职务的时间。

　　Governance flaws are usually addressed piecemeal¹⁵. I have written recently about the need to give more weight to remuneration committees, the importance of separating chair and chief executive, the role of independent voices in improving and safeguarding culture. But the moment has come to address the root of the problem.

　　公司治理方面的缺陷通常是以零打碎敲的方式应对的。近期我曾撰文阐述提高薪酬委员会地位的必要性，由不同人出任公司董事长和首席执行官的重要性，以及独立声音在改进和维护公司文化方面所扮演的角色。但现在是时候讨论问题根源了。

　　One former chair and director of a number of small UK companies emailed me to suggest scrapping¹⁶ non-executive directors. “Doing away with most NEDs would make investors¹⁸ face up to their responsibilities,” he wrote.

　　一位曾在数家英国小型公司担任董事长和董事的人发电子邮件给我，建议在企业中取消非执行董事。他写道，“取消绝大多数的非执行董事职位，将迫使投资者直面自己的责任”。

　　This remedy would appal¹⁹ many (including parts of the FT group) who train, advise, and recruit directors. But investors need the kick. Dodging²⁰ active ownership responsibility for their cluttered²¹ portfolios²², “they looked to NEDs to do it for them (at a fraction of [what] they paid themselves)”, the same director writes. Largely, that is still the case.

　　这副药方会让很多培训、咨询和招聘董事的人感到惊骇（包括英国《金融时报》的一些部门）。但投资者需要这种刺激。给我邮件的这位董事写道，投资者逃避对自己凌乱投资组合的积极所有权责任，“他们寄希望于非执行董事代替他们履行这些职责”（而聘请非执行董事的费用只占了投资者给自己报酬的一小部分）。总的来说，目前的情况仍然如此。

　　There are exceptions. Norway’s sovereign oil fund is attacking high executive pay, the focus of increasing investor¹⁷ protest worldwide, and plans to sue Volkswagen over its emissions²³ scandal. Shareholders²⁴ have more regulatory weapons and are using them. A few are putting their own professional representatives on boards to influence strategy.

　　也有例外的情况。例如挪威的主权石油基金正在杯葛管理层高薪，世界各地聚焦于加强投资者保护，以及投资者在大众汽车(Volkswagen)尾气排放丑闻曝光后计划向该公司提起诉讼。股东现在拥有了更多监管武器，并已开始使用它们。一些股东提名自己的专业代表进入董事会，以影响公司战略。

　　Stripping out non-executives could tempt²⁵ executives to revisit the bad habits some showed when their power was untrammelled. Even private equity²⁶ firms — hardly fans of extraneous²⁷ bureaucracy — like to appoint directors to oversee⁸ companies they own. Executives say they prefer private equity’s hands-on approach to the stifling²⁸ governance cotton-wool applied²⁹ by some listed companies.

　　取消非执行董事或许会导致管理层故态复萌，一些高管在他们的权力不受束缚时显露过那些坏毛病。即便是私募股权投资公司——这类公司并不喜欢多余的官僚安排——也喜欢指派董事去控管他们拥有的企业。企业管理层表示，他们更喜欢私募投资公司亲自上手参与的方式，而不是某些上市公司采取的像棉絮一样令人窒息的治理机制。

　　The US researchers suggest ending the blame game and assembling boards of specialists with relevant expertise³⁰ to help and challenge chief executives. Tomorrow’s Company proposes that directors engage more closely with shareholders who, in turn, should behave more like stewards³¹ of long-term growth, rather than traders.

　　美国研究人员提出的建议是，终止互相指责的游戏，组建拥有相关专业技能的专家委员会，由其辅佐和挑战首席执行官。智库Tomorrow’s Company建议，董事们应与股东保持更加密切的互动，反过来，股东应该更像长期增长的领路人，而非像交易员。

　　Another director I know strongly supports non-executives and suggests they are the best guarantors of long-termism. She may be right, in theory. Yet in practice, the merry-go-round of board service, well lubricated at the top level with fees and prestige, leaves few satisfied. Making executives, regulators and investors start from scratch — without the ragged³² safety net that non-executive directors struggle to provide — would force them to think harder about how to do their own jobs better.

　　我所认识的另一位董事则强烈支持非执行董事制度，并指出非执行董事是确保长远眼光的最佳保障。从理论上来说，她或许是对的。但在实践中，走马灯一样不停轮换的董事服务（高层享受优厚的待遇、名利双收），很少能让人感到满意。让公司管理层、监管当局以及投资者们从零开始——离开非执行董事难以提供的并不牢靠的安全网——将迫使他们更加努力地思考如何把自己的工作做得更好。

1 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

2 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

3 catastrophes   

n.灾祸( catastrophe的名词复数 )；灾难；不幸事件；困难

参考例句：

• Two of history's worst natural catastrophes occurred in 1970. 1970年发生了历史上最严重两次自然灾害。 来自辞典例句
• The Swiss deposits contain evidence of such catastrophes. 瑞士的遗址里还有这种灾难的证据。 来自辞典例句

4 complacent   

adj.自满的；自鸣得意的

参考例句：

• We must not become complacent the moment we have some success.我们决不能一见成绩就自满起来。
• She was complacent about her achievements.她对自己的成绩沾沾自喜。

5 smothered   

（使）窒息， （使）透不过气( smother的过去式和过去分词 )； 覆盖； 忍住； 抑制

参考例句：

• He smothered the baby with a pillow. 他用枕头把婴儿闷死了。
• The fire is smothered by ashes. 火被灰闷熄了。

6 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

7 scapegoats   

n.代人受过的人，替罪羊( scapegoat的名词复数 )v.使成为替罪羊( scapegoat的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They were made the scapegoats for the misfire of the program. 他们成了那个计划失败的替罪羊。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Only some of the guards and a minor hotel employee, chosen as scapegoats, were imprisoned. 只有一些保镖和那个旅馆的小职员当了替罪羊，被关进了监狱。 来自辞典例句

8 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

9 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

10 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

11 deference   

n.尊重，顺从；敬意

参考例句：

• Do you treat your parents and teachers with deference?你对父母师长尊敬吗？
• The major defect of their work was deference to authority.他们的主要缺陷是趋从权威。

12 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

13 averse   

adj.厌恶的；反对的，不乐意的

参考例句：

• I don't smoke cigarettes,but I'm not averse to the occasional cigar.我不吸烟，但我不反对偶尔抽一支雪茄。
• We are averse to such noisy surroundings.我们不喜欢这么吵闹的环境。

14 audit   

v.审计；查帐；核对；旁听

参考例句：

• Each year they audit our accounts and certify them as being true and fair.他们每年对我们进行账务审核，以确保其真实无误。
• As usual,the yearly audit will take place in December.跟往常一样，年度审计将在十二月份进行。

15 piecemeal   

adj.零碎的；n.片，块；adv.逐渐地；v.弄成碎块

参考例句：

• A lack of narrative drive leaves the reader with piecemeal vignettes.叙述缺乏吸引力，读者读到的只是一些支离破碎的片段。
• Let's settle the matter at one stroke,not piecemeal.把这事一气儿解决了吧，别零敲碎打了。

16 scrapping   

刮，切除坯体余泥

参考例句：

• He was always scrapping at school. 他在学校总打架。
• These two dogs are always scrapping. 这两条狗总是打架。

17 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

18 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

19 appal   

vt.使胆寒，使惊骇

参考例句：

• I was appalled at the news.我被这消息吓坏了。
• This "Hamlet" will appal some for being so resolutely unclassical.新版《哈姆雷特 》如此违背经典，确实惊世骇俗。

20 dodging   

n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避

参考例句：

• He ran across the road, dodging the traffic. 他躲开来往的车辆跑过马路。
• I crossed the highway, dodging the traffic. 我避开车流穿过了公路。 来自辞典例句

21 cluttered   

v.杂物，零乱的东西零乱vt.( clutter的过去式和过去分词 )；乱糟糟地堆满，把…弄得很乱；（以…） 塞满…

参考例句：

• The room is cluttered up with all kinds of things. 零七八碎的东西放满了一屋子。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The desk is cluttered with books and papers. 桌上乱糟糟地堆满了书报。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

22 portfolios   

n.投资组合( portfolio的名词复数 )；（保险）业务量；（公司或机构提供的）系列产品；纸夹

参考例句：

• Price risk arises in non-trading portfolios, as well as in trading portfolios. 价格风险中出现的非贸易投资，以及在贸易投资组合。 来自互联网
• How do we fatten our portfolios and stay financially healthy? 我们怎样育肥我们的投资结构和维持财政健康呢？ 来自互联网

23 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

24 shareholders   

n.股东( shareholder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The meeting was attended by 90% of shareholders. 90%的股东出席了会议。
• the company's fiduciary duty to its shareholders 公司对股东负有的受托责任

25 tempt   

vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣

参考例句：

• Nothing could tempt him to such a course of action.什么都不能诱使他去那样做。
• The fact that she had become wealthy did not tempt her to alter her frugal way of life.她有钱了，可这丝毫没能让她改变节俭的生活习惯。

26 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

27 extraneous   

adj.体外的；外来的；外部的

参考例句：

• I can choose to ignore these extraneous thoughts.我可以选择无视这些外来的想法。
• Reductant from an extraneous source is introduced.外来的还原剂被引进来。

28 stifling   

a.令人窒息的

参考例句：

• The weather is stifling. It looks like rain. 今天太闷热，光景是要下雨。
• We were stifling in that hot room with all the windows closed. 我们在那间关着窗户的热屋子里，简直透不过气来。

29 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

30 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

31 stewards   

（轮船、飞机等的）乘务员( steward的名词复数 )； （俱乐部、旅馆、工会等的）管理员； （大型活动的）组织者； （私人家中的）管家

参考例句：

• The stewards all wore armbands. 乘务员都戴了臂章。
• The stewards will inspect the course to see if racing is possible. 那些干事将检视赛马场看是否适宜比赛。

32 ragged   

adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的

参考例句：

• A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
• Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。