Directors of companies and organisations have attended more meetings over the past year, but not all are being compensated for the extra time.
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The seventh annual survey of fees by the Institute of Directors (IoD) in partnership with Ernst & Young (EY), found many directors spent more time on board duties, due to the pandemic, often for reduced fees or forgoing payment altogether.
Still, non-executive chair fees rose 7.9 percent in the past 12 months, after three years of relatively stable median increases, while non-executive director fees rose 7.1 percent, with the median rate rising to $50,000 from $47,000 a year.
"This lift may be due to general inflationary pressures, or a perception of the skills and experience required to manage increased complexity and risk," IoD general manager, learning and branch engagement Michael Fraser said, noting the increase was not spread evenly across the various industries reflected in the survey of 1,039 organisations.
"The housing market and construction industry are among the key drivers of our economic recovery, so it is perhaps unsurprising that the largest annual median fee industry movement was in property and real estate services at 10.3 percent, followed by construction at 7.2 percent," Fraser said.
Industries showing no fee movements included accommodation and food services, administrative and support services, arts and recreation services, government administration and safety, mining, retail trade, and wholesale trade, while agriculture, forestry and fishing saw a 0.1 percent increase.
"At an organisational level, NZX-listed, statutory boards and Māori entities reported stable director fees, while council-controlled organisations and not-for-profit boards saw increases of 4.8 percent and 4.4 percent respectively."
The survey also found that directors are mirroring the employee experience with more virtual meetings and more frequent engagement, with just 8.2 percent of organisations requiring directors to attend a meeting in person.
"It appears the impact of the 'virtual workplace' brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic may have allowed directors to rationalise their commitments and for boards to be more efficient in their time commitments," Fraser said.
"One thing we have learnt over the last year or so is that the most successful boards - those that can confront challenge and grasp opportunity - are agile and adaptable."
However, EY partner Una Diver said limitations posed by the pandemic had added to the complexity of governance
"It has also presented an opportunity for organisations and people leaders to adapt their approach to some of the key risk areas in the people arena, such as skills and talent, capital and cost and workforce planning," Diver said.
"Across all aspects of governance, there are a watershed of changes occurring that will continue to provide intellectual challenge for directors. Whether you are new to governance or an experienced director, it's certainly an exciting time to be serving on boards."