A PLEA for the Island’s business community to take a more radical approach toward the appointment of board members was made this week by risk management specialist Stephen Platt.

He urged bosses to stop following the ‘same old, same old’ patterns in order to avoid potential repetitions of what he termed ‘black swan’ events.

Mr Platt was speaking at the Jersey International Business School’s annual leadership forum to an audience of about 200 at the Hotel de France.

He said that businesses should assess the effectiveness of their boards to ensure that the board members are equipped to do their job.

‘I know directors who cannot read a balance sheet. Also, just because someone is a lawyer or an accountant does not mean that they will be any good as a board member.’ he said.