Corporate Governance is an emerging ideology. It is an attempt by Corporate Society to ward off its own dooms day on account of straying off-course practising dual standards or misguided actions, with a wide gap between what is professed and what is practised. It is intended to prevent the setting in of greed in the minds of those who sway corporate bodies to speculate impelled by short-term goals and to make quick riches at the expenses of public policy and corporate safety. It is also an endeavour on the part of the corporate body to project itself as a forward looking and honest organisation befitting the trust and confidence of the stakeholders and the potential investors. What will happen to the country if ten major enterprises like Enron fails at a stretch due to imprudent policies and activities?

Corporte Governance is the right answer, but how best is it implemented or inculcated as a corporate practice in the day to day policies, strategies, setting up of goals and performance parameters, in defining individual responsibility etc.? Norms of standards and control measures superintended by regulators by means of enabling provisions of the code of corporate governance are an attempt to control things from the fag end. It alone cannot usher in positive results. At best these can detect or check abuses. How to start with corporate governance operationally in the day to day affairs of our functioning?

Regulators look upon audit committees, surveillance by the Board, by independent directors etc. But what about the grass root operating staff and the middle level executives. It is they who perform and carry out daily operations. Those above them plan policy or strategy, direct, guide and may also motivate. Right thinking and good practices must percolarte at all levels of the organisation. Internal discipline brings automatically integrity in external conduct.

More stable and concrete results in the sphere of corporate governance accrue only when the corporate body in its inward thinking and aspirations accepts the philosophy of corporate governance as its culture or mantra of management. Corporate Governance should imply inbuilt discipline and organisationally accepted code of behaviour as a functional or operational culture and not something that is externally enforced or regulated.

1. What you intend is what you speak, what you speak is what you do and what you do or what are your results, you do not hide from those to whom it matters. This is the essence of transparency, which should be first policy of the Corporate body.

2. Secondly realisation of corporate goals and objectives by the organisation is ensured by creating goodwill and understanding amongst the stakeholders. The policy of the corporate body should ensure to safeguard and promote the due interests of all stakeholders, while still in the process of striving towards its prime goal of enhancing the shareholders value of the company. In the long run these two are complementary and not conflicting.

3. In the world of globalised competition an organization can survive only when its accepts TQM (Total Quality Management) and prepares itself not only to quickly respond to the frequently changing environment, but also equips itself with the necessary talent to foresee in advance the emerging trends and readjust its policy accordingly.

Every Corporate body should define and formulate its "Vision" and "Mission" statements based on the above three ground rules. These basic corporate charters should guide all its policies, strategies and programmes. The Vision statement defines the peak glory or credit which the corporate body desires to surge towards in its forward movement as a long-term measure. You can cover hundred miles, only when you make the decision and determination and start earnestly with the initial mile to be pursued relentlessly further, impelled by the determination to reach the destination. While "Vision" defines corporate growth and development and the inherent ambition towards attaining corporate excellence, "Mission" is the commitment or charter that should bind its duties and responsibilities to its customers and to the society at large. This is a loud statement to the world at large, that these our commitments and we will be steadfast in our mission.

After these two are documented, representing the charter of aspirations and the charter of commitment, the messages in these two charters should percolate down to the junior-most level in the organisation and accepted by everyone as the code or parameter for performance. Vision promotes the development and excellence of the organisation and Mission makes it committed to ethics and public good. The organisation design and structure, the demarcation of powers and responsibilities, the annual performance plans, business strategies, policies etc. should be formulated echoing the contents of the statements defining the Corporate "Vision" and "Mission".

The hierarchical system of management vertically built cannot bring about effective functioning under the modern concept of globalised competitive corporate world. It leads to concentration of authority resulting in violations of good practices to go unquestioned. But can this be out-done overnight. What is the alternative? Organizations can be vertically designed, but the functional culture should result through horizontal interface. The Team, the committee, the division or department as they function should bring more cohesion and understanding of the vision and mission goals of the organization and everyone's respective roles synchronised thereto. When the workgroup or team meets, discussions should be interactive, free and fair. It is not one person sermonising and all others mutely hearing. Please refer more about workgroups and team in the articles on Group effectiveness & Group Discipline.