Character Is Not a Training Need

The issue When a concern about a chief executive’s conduct reaches the board, the usual answer is development—coaching, mentoring, a program—which treats a question of character as a gap in skill. Why it persists A training need can be resourced, scheduled, and reported as closed; a judgement about character can only be made, and the directors who make it must own it. What to do Decide first whether the concern is about skill or conduct, and answer a conduct question as one: with particulars, a finding, and a date to look again.In June 2025, at a lunch in Sydney, some of National Australia Bank’s major investors questioned whether its chief executive, Andrew Irvine, should strengthen his leadership skills and curtail his drinking at events with clients and directors. The board met informally, concluded that without more specific claims no formal action was required, and kept its confidence in him; according to The Australian Financial Review, which first reported the lunch, it also…