Investors in infrastructure project companies are experiencing an unprecedented assault on their value whilst facing the looming and increasingly risky challenges of concession expiries.
Similarly, construction and services SMEs are facing complex challenges of lock-down induced corporate debt, supply chain volatility, post-Brexit labour shortages, the trend to off-site fabrication and, despite expectations of rising construction demand, increasingly unpredictable workload forecasting.
These are creating the most challenging business environments for construction and infrastructure investors for a generation.
The appointment of independent Non-Executive Directors (NEDs) to Project Company and SME boards can help to preserve shareholder value, improve operational oversight and contribute broad experience and perspective to board business. So why is such a cost-effective solution not more widely adopted?
This presentation explores the pros and cons of appointing independent NEDs to infrastructure project companies and SMEs in the construction sector.
3. WHAT AM I GOING TO COVER?
Background to the Non-Executive
Director (NED) role
What does an NED do?
NED v Independent Director
The pros & cons of an NED
appointment
Relevance to smaller construction
companies
Relevance to project companies &
special purpose vehicles (SPCs/SPVs)
Cost-benefit analysis
How to appoint an NED
The investor’s perspective: Andy
Matthews (Infracapital/M&G)
The recruitment perspective: Joanna
Martin (Stork & May)
5. BACKGROUND TO THE ROLE OF NED
UK Corporate Governance Code and FRC
guidelines (latest update 2018)
Cadbury Committee response to corporate
scandals and failures in 1980s
The UK Corporate Governance code and LSE
Listing Rules
NEDs to bring independent judgement to
board decisions on strategy, finance and
performance
Check the power and influence of dominant
characters on company boards
Protect the rights of shareholders and other
stakeholders
Timely and accurate reporting and disclosure
Not law but best practice (FRC asks
companies to ‘comply or explain’ in annual
reports)
Increasingly adopted by smaller companies
keen to follow best practice
Generally across all sectors, smaller
companies have one or two Non-Executive
Directors
7. WHAT DOES AN NED DO?
Constructive challenge, strategic input, outside experience
Holds management to account
Overseas financial and operational performance
Ensures the interests of all stakeholders considered
Provides sounding board for strategic direction and key business decisions
Serves as an intermediary for shareholders, clients, other stakeholders and in
board disputes
9. NED V INDEPENDENT DIRECTOR
Not all NEDs are independent…
⁃ Nominated director of sponsor or investor organisation
⁃ Requirements of Shareholders Agreement or Articles of Association
⁃ Lending covenants
⁃ The ‘old boys’ network
⁃ Director swap with partner firm
Both appointments are valid but with different interests and agenda
10. PROS AND CONS OF APPOINTING AN INDEPENDENT NED
“Let’s not forget that the shareholders desire for transparency
has to be balanced by our need for concealment”
11. PROS AND CONS OF APPOINTING AN INDEPENDENT NED
Constructive challenge, strategic input, outside
experience
Management oversight and accountability
Overseas financial and operational
performance
Ensures the interests of all stakeholders
considered
Provides sounding board for strategic direction
and key business decisions
Serves as an intermediary for shareholders,
clients, other stakeholders and in board
disputes
Cost of recruitment
Cost of appointment
Defining precise needs…
⁃ Long-term or…
⁃ Short-term/challenge specific
Finding the right candidate…
⁃ Personality
⁃ Experience
⁃ Appropriateness for business’s stage of
development or challenges
⁃ Fit
⁃ Credibility
PROS CONS
13. RELEVANCE TO SMALLER CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES
Introduces wider experience than currently available in the exec team or…
Introduces specific experience to help meet particular challenge such as…
⁃ management buy-out, business expansion, acquisition, dispute etc
Buys-in skills and experience that would be unaffordable full-time
Cross-fertilisation of ideas and insights from outside (in or out of sector)
Network connections
Raises investor and/or lender confidence…
⁃ Business recovery loans, refinancing, new share issues etc
⁃ Evidence of openness, transparency and good governance
Counter-balance to dominant board personalities
Overcomes or challenges ‘group think’
14. RELEVANCE TO SMALLER CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES
Executive Team Focus NED Focus
Immediate operational challenges Long-term perspective on operational
decisions
Cashflow/invoicing/payments Business strategy & business
objectives
Post-covid expansion/debt/working
capital
Investor & lender confidence
Labour/skills shortages Sustainability
Supplier/raw material costs Succession planning/management
resilience
Forward order book Governance & compliance
15. RELEVANCE TO PROJECT COMPANIES & SPCS/SPVS
“Of course what we’re doing is wrong but that doesn’t make it
indefensible”
16. RELEVANCE TO PROJECT COMPANIES & SPCS/SPVS
Many current NEDs are not independent…
⁃ i.e., nominees of sponsors or equity
investors
Neutral NEDs bring objectivity and
independent oversight
Offer impartiality to acquiring investors or
new/refinancing lenders
Bring broader experience than available
within management team
Provides balance to commercial interests
of sponsor or dominant investor
Creates independent point of contact for
client counterparties, lenders, passive
investors and other stakeholders
Can offer impartial, accurate and concise
reporting and transparent feedback
Credible NED can seal a deal or an
investor, or secure financing or
refinancing
17. RELEVANCE TO PROJECT COMPANIES & SPCS/SPVS
Executive Team Focus NED Focus
Contractor performance management Future operational & financial threats/
opportunities (e.g. lifecycle, refinancing)
Payment mechanism management
(revenue risk)
Concession expiry and handback risks
Penalty avoidance and increasingly
dispute management
Lender relationships & support (typically
highly-geared debt)
Investor reporting (tends to be
retrospective)
Shareholder returns & confidence
Lending convenance monitoring Intermediary in client and contractor
disputes (increasingly prevalent)
Client relationship management High-level concession relationships
(client/users/public etc)
19. DO NED COSTS OUTWEIGH THE BENEFITS?
Valid time and affordability concerns
Typically 2-3 days per month for
smaller companies and SPVs
Typically £25k - £40k pa depending
on needs and experience
Financial benefit often outweigh the
costs
Case study: NED helped restructure
company adding £5m to shareholder
value over 3 yrs. representing a 50x
return on cost
…So yes if…
⁃ Appointment appropriate to
challenge or need
⁃ Good fit with business and exec
team
⁃ Strength of character to be truly
independent and impartial
⁃ Necessary stature and credibility
to carry the support of board and
other stakeholders
21. Not a ‘job for the boys’ or an
‘executive swap’
Full value is dependent on an
independent appointment
Requires a detailed skills gap/needs
assessment and detailed brief
Open advertising and/or
Specialist external search
consultancy
Risks of getting it wrong…
⁃ internal conflict
⁃ distraction from rather than
contribution to board challenges
⁃ complexity and infrequency puts
pressure on recruitment - temptation
to defer
⁃ if independent, won’t be known to
board so needs faith and trust
⁃ rigorous candidate DD to ensure
skills, experience and personality fit
HOW TO APPOINT AN NED
23. NEDS – THE INVESTOR VIEW: ANDY MATTHEWS (INFRACAPITAL)
1. Independence to give business balance and can dedicate time
2. Specialist additional advice around the board table - filling in the
skillset gap in investor/management gaps - investors are generalist
with broad experience
3. Link between management and investor
24. NEDS – THE RECRUITMENT ANGLE: JOANNA MARTIN (STORK & MAY)
25. CIG Services Masterclass; How to find good non-executive directors
• What skills/experience/contribution do you want? You need to really think about your specification
and get board agreement; an industry worthy? a sounding board for the CEO? a door opener?....
• How much do you want to pay? Dependant on size of organisation and how much involvement you
want – assume £25-100K could be a mix of fee/day rate/equity
• How are you going to find them?
• Executive search – minimum cost c£40K, should be timely and broad reaching search to give you
a good shortlist of 5 candidates. Its really important to pick the right search firm/consultant
• On-line advertising; Nurole, Women on Boards, Guardian, Sunday Times – cost £10-50K, you can
get different levels of service
• Contract research - £1K/day to map the market, particularly effective if you want specialist
skills
• LinkedIn – mostly free but will require you to sift through a lot of applications
• Networking with advisors etc – mostly free but not extensive and beware vested interests
jsm@stork-may.com