Best board practices were the focus of the second annual Private Company Governance Summit, presented jointly by Family Business and Directors & Boards magazines and held at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, D.C., May 7-9. The conference drew about 150 participants, including owners and directors of family and other closely held businesses, stakeholders in private equity-owned companies, and advisers to privately owned businesses.
The summit opened on Wednesday, May 7, with a discussion session entitled “The Effective Private Board.” Steven J. Lytle, former chairman of Columbia Distributing and a director of The Agnew Company, a family business holding company; Jim Datin, CEO of BioAgilytix Labs Inc.; and Stan Silverman, lead director of Drummond Scientific, a director of Femco Holdings LLC and Exocor Inc., and former president and CEO of PQ Corporation, discussed the key traits of successful boards and best practices for private boards. Steve McClure, Ph.D., principal consultant of the Family Business Consulting Group, led the conversation. A networking reception and buffet dinner followed.