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| CBI to search for new president as it overhauls working culture | CBI to search for new president as it overhauls working culture |
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| Lobby group shares prospectus with members on changes to governance after scandal | Lobby group shares prospectus with members on changes to governance after scandal |
| Britain’s most prominent lobby group, the Confederation of British Industry, has put forward proposals to overhaul its culture as it prepares for a confidence vote by members next week that will decide the organisation’s future. | |
| More than 50 of the group’s highest profile members left after a series of sexual misconduct allegations, first published by the Guardian, and the government and opposition Labour party suspended engagement with the CBI, throwing its future into question. | |
| As part of its drive for change, the group will start a search for a new president. The incumbent, Brian McBride, will hand over responsibilities in January 2024 after overseeing a range of changes from the board downward. | As part of its drive for change, the group will start a search for a new president. The incumbent, Brian McBride, will hand over responsibilities in January 2024 after overseeing a range of changes from the board downward. |
| In the forward to a prospectus published by the CBI on Wednesay, he told members: “We are all chastened by the events of the past 12 weeks”. The allegations that prompted the cultural overhaul include rape, other sexual misconduct, and drug-taking. | |
| “While striving to represent and support our members to the highest standards, we simultaneously underestimated the daily effort required to maintain a great culture and the operational excellence of a growing CBI,” the outgoing president said. “The consequences of that failure, you already know. We share a deep sense of responsibility to put things right.” | |
| The lobby group has hired Ffion Hague, an expert in board evaluation and governance reviews to study its operation. It will also create a “culture advisory committee”, and “strengthening our internal listening channels with staff”. | |
| These are two of a range of changes to its governance laid out in a prospectus shared with members. The document is aimed at proving to its members that it can rebuild ties with government at all levels across in the UK before a crunch meeting and confidence vote by its members on 6 June. | |
| Voting opens on Wednesday, with the results expected to be announced soon after next week’s meeting. Journalists have been barred from the meeting and Q&A with members. | |
| The prospectus lays out the resolution that members will vote on: “Do the changes we have made − and the commitments we have set out − to reform our governance, culture, and purpose give you the confidence you need to support the CBI?” | |
| The plan follows an open letter to members in April in which McBride conceded the organisation had “failed to filter out culturally toxic people during the hiring process”. | |
| Developed while the group mothballed its activities in April and May, the turnaround plan aims to “transform” the CBI’s culture in the long term, the group said. It follows an independent investigation into its handling of complaints by the law firm Fox Williams and an examination of its culture by the ethics consultancy Principia Advisory. | Developed while the group mothballed its activities in April and May, the turnaround plan aims to “transform” the CBI’s culture in the long term, the group said. It follows an independent investigation into its handling of complaints by the law firm Fox Williams and an examination of its culture by the ethics consultancy Principia Advisory. |
| “We are making radical and rapid changes to upgrade our governance structures and processes,” said the group’s new director general, Rain Newton-Smith. | “We are making radical and rapid changes to upgrade our governance structures and processes,” said the group’s new director general, Rain Newton-Smith. |
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| She added: “Blanket accusations of the CBI’s culture being toxic are not correct, but we have work to do to embed a consistent set of values for all of our staff. | |
| “For the CBI, this has been a painful period and a time of deep reflection. We are determined to learn the lessons needed and emerge from this as a stronger organisation, one that is able to share what we’ve learnt with our wider society and regain the right to be a trusted voice,” Newton-Smith said. She added that the body was “learning from global experts on ethics, corporate governance and tackling sexual harassment”. | |
| The CBI said it had consulted with more than 1,000 business leaders on the plan and that they valued its ability to “bring together sectors and multiple parts of government, both local and national, including the major economic regulators”. | |
| On Wednesday, McBride said: “The need to bolster the CBI’s governance structures is something that has come through loud and clear during this period. | |
| “We are making significant and fundamental changes to improve our organisation for the better and for the people working in it. We remain determined to restore the confidence of our members, and that of our many stakeholders, in the CBI.” | “We are making significant and fundamental changes to improve our organisation for the better and for the people working in it. We remain determined to restore the confidence of our members, and that of our many stakeholders, in the CBI.” |