The Role Of Boards In An Exponential World

What do companies like Discovery, Capitec, Amazon, Apple and Tesla all have in common? Well, for one thing, they all trade at a premium when compared to their industry peers and standard valuation measures. Tesla, for example, had the same valuation in 2021 as the next nine automotive stocks combined, despite having less than 5% of the total market share. Many factors drive these premiums, but one consistent is that these companies all have somehow managed to convince the market that they will continue innovating at rates beyond what others can match. This, in turn, means they have to invest significant resources into innovation programmes in ways that are more aligned to the top VCs than traditional corporates. In this session, Colin Iles and Louis Geeringh will be exploring these themes in more detail and asking whether boards need to redefine their roles if they want the organisations they oversee to adapt and thrive in a world where change is now exponential.