Erika Eliasson-Norris, Founder and CEO of Beyond Governance, became the youngest C-suite executive at a FTSE 250 company in her field aged just 32. Since then, she has established herself as one of the leading lights in governance. Now she’s on a mission to promote the long-term benefits of a strong governance strategy.
What was your upbringing like and how has it shaped the person you are today?
My life started from humble beginnings. I grew up in a household from a low socioeconomic background. My dad worked night shifts driving trucks to provide for the family, while my mum stayed at home to look after us because childcare costs were higher than what she could earn from working. My dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer when I was 17, just before my A-levels, but he battled against the odds and thankfully survived, but now lives with multiple sclerosis. It was a struggle, but we coped. I had to fight for my education and starting my career was tough too. But all these experiences have made me the tenacious, driven and resilient person I am today, and I’m grateful for that.
What made you decide to go into governance as a career?
I stumbled across the world of governance completely by accident when I was studying to become a lawyer in London. I bumped into a former waitressing colleague on Christmas Eve 2007. She had since become a Governance Professional and told me all about the profession. The rest is history, as they say.
How has your career path progressed since then?
Seven roles in 10 years with clear strategic choices made along the way on the type of experience that I needed to become a well-rounded professional. This involved working for larger and smaller organisations at various stages of their life cycle from the development and growth phase, to the mature or plateau stage through to decline and renewal stage. Each stage has its own unique challenges and opportunities and being part of each of these has enabled me to understand the key to sustainable growth and success.
How did becoming the youngest person in your industry to take on a C-suite role at a FTSE 250 company define you as a leader and what did you learn from the experience?
Having to work with high-level executives and board members at such a young age required me to quickly improve my communication style. I was expected to provide feedback, interjecting and steering conversations as required. This made me both tenacious, but also pragmatic; when you’re in the boardroom you realise just how much there is to get done and the time pressures on discussing and making a decision, so your information flow has to be strong.
What was your main aim in setting up Beyond Governance?
My main focus is on changing the face of governance, good governance creates resilience (the speed at which an organisation recovers after a disturbance) and resistance (the ability to remain stable when confronted with disturbances). We want to bring to the fore that all organisational scandals and collapses relate back to governance. I want every organisation to realise that good governance results in efficiency, long-term sustainability and positive financial returns.
What are your proudest achievements at the company?
I am especially proud of winning Governance Professional of the Year 2022 from the Chartered Governance Institute UK and Ireland. But it wasn’t all down to me. It was also thanks to the hard work and dedication of the team around me. And its testament to the service we provide clients.
Through our B-Corp accreditation, we have established many ways of supporting both our clients and employees. We constantly strive to put our people first and give them a voice, and are always open to feedback. Our clients value our wisdom and the fact we always exceed expectations to provide feedback on how to improve their governance.
How has becoming a mother of twins changed your outlook on business and your role?
Not just having twins, but identical twins, has required me to see beyond the surface of someone’s personality to really get to know them on a deeper level. Governance is all about the people that function in the organisational ecosystem and how they interact with each other when no one is watching. I have learnt that no two people are the same, even if they are genetically identical. Becoming a mother and having to juggle multiple tasks, has also enabled me to fast-track my communication, problem-solving and time-management skills.
What are the biggest challenges facing organisations when it comes to governance today?
The biggest challenge is understanding that governance is at the heart of the solution to building resilience and resistance that supports the long-term success of the organisation. If more organisations understood this, more value would be created and retained and fewer scandals and collapses would occur.
And opportunities?
The biggest opportunity governance creates is the ability to stabilise an organisation’s ecosystem and create a lasting culture that will support the long-term stability and optimisation of that organisation. With this comes increased predictability, decisions can be made faster and when disturbances hit resilience and resistance support the organisation to recover quicker.
How can organisations create a strong governance strategy?
To create a strong governance strategy, organisations should start by assessing their current governance practices and identifying areas of improvement. They should then establish clear governance objectives and develop policies, procedures, and controls that align with those objectives. Finally, they should promote a culture of transparency, accountability, and ethical behaviour, which can foster trust with stakeholders and support the organisation’s long-term success. The area of governance is vast however there are many useful guides and templates on our website which can be downloaded for free which may help on the journey.
What should employers be doing to reassess their strategies and operations in order to retain and motivate staff in the wake of the Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting?
People want to work for organisations that care about them, have a great culture and support their values. Strong governance enables the board and executive management to embody this within the company’s mission, values and strategy. By thoroughly assessing the accountability and transparency structures within governance, they can make their organisation a highly productive place which candidates are lining up to join as well as reducing the number of resignations. It all starts with having a strong corporate governance in place.
How do you see Beyond Governance evolving over the next five to 10 years? What are your main targets?
I see us growing exponentially over the coming years. ESG is growing year on year, and we’re raising the profile of good governance and its benefits. I’m excited to continue to grow our multi-award-winning team to be one of the world’s leading governance consultancies. Above all else we’re looking to grow whilst retaining our culture and good governance practises, we want to remain an employer of choice and provide our employees with work life balance, great work and a dynamic culture.
