Just 37 percent of directors describe their board as an essential tool for value creation, while 63 percent believe boards could be making a greater contribution, a widely watched industry survey has found.
According to Board Intelligence's Summer 2026 Board Value Index, directors have widespread concerns about board effectiveness: only 18 percent say their board strongly enables innovation.
At the same time, 86 percent of directors say overly rigid or inconsistent decision-making processes have contributed to a delayed, rushed or poor decision during the past six months. Respondents identified decision-making frameworks, unclear roles and responsibilities and the quality of board information as the three biggest barriers to better decision-making.
'The environment boards are operating in today is fundamentally different from even a few months ago, but governance has not kept pace,' says Pippa Begg, CEO and co-founder of Board Intelligence. 'Boards are being tested on more than their ability to provide oversight and compliance. They are increasingly being measured by the quality, speed and clarity of their decision-making in much more uncertain and fast-moving conditions.'
The report suggests these structural weaknesses are becoming more significant as boards tackle increasingly complex strategic issues. More than four in five directors (84 percent) say their boards have discussed which decisions should remain human-led versus AI-led. Meanwhile, 98 percent say quantum computing is now being discussed at board level, although many continue to view it primarily through a risk rather than opportunity lens.
Despite this growing focus on AI, boards appear divided over how much they themselves will need to change. Four in 10 directors believe boards will require either no meaningful change or only minor adjustments during the next five years. Just 8 percent expect boards to be completely reimagined.
Begg believes this risks leaving boards behind as technology accelerates.
'Boards are being forced to confront a fundamental question: where should human judgement end, and where should AI begin? Yet many directors know their governance structures and decision-making processes are struggling to keep pace with the scale and speed of change,' she explains.
The research also highlights a tendency for boards to spend too much time looking backwards. Overall, 41 percent of directors say at least half of board meeting time is devoted to reviewing past performance instead of discussing future strategy and growth. UK boards appear particularly affected, with 51 percent reporting that at least half of meeting time focuses on historical performance, compared with 29 percent in the US.
This emphasis on the past may be limiting boards' ability to drive innovation. While 79 percent of directors believe their board enables innovation to some extent, only 18 percent say it does so strongly. There is also a notable perception gap between executives and non-executive directors. Some 27 percent of CEOs and CFOs believe their board strongly enables innovation compared with just 12 percent of non-executive directors.
The findings suggest improving board effectiveness will require more than refining governance processes alone. Directors also identified information quality, meeting preparation and board skills as factors affecting decision-making. Across all three areas, between 78 percent and 84 percent of respondents said these shortcomings had contributed to delayed, rushed or poor decisions during the previous six months.
According to the report, AI could help address many of these challenges by improving board reporting, helping directors prepare more effectively and supporting stronger decision-making, while keeping human judgement at the center of governance.
'To succeed over the next decade, boards need to strengthen the quality of their thinking and modernize the way they process information, challenge assumptions and make decisions,' Begg says.
Natalie Bannerman
Natalie is a former telecoms and infrastructure journalist, a role she held for nearly seven years. Before this, she worked in the B2C startup space, covering lifestyle, arts and culture reporting. As senior reporter for Governance Intelligence she...
