Episode Details

0:00 -- Intro.

1:34 -- Start of interview.

2:28 -- Mary's "origin story". About her legal career at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP. On the influence of Toni Rembe on her board career.  

9:13 -- On her transition to a board career, and lawyers as corporate directors. "Boards have prejudice against putting lawyers on boards. I think that is wrong and extremely short sighted [But I think we are starting to see a real trend of more lawyers on boards.]" The ABA and Catalyst's DirectWomen Initiative (its mission is to increase the representation of women lawyers on corporate boards.)

11:57 -- On the evolution of gender diversity at law firms. "I see progress, but probably not as fast as the most enlightened corporate environments."

13:49 -- On boardroom diversity. "In America we have a cultural norm against quotas." 

19:01 -- On the evolution of shareholder engagement and the empowerment of corporate directors.

22:24 -- On the shareholder and stakeholder governance debate [BRT restatement of the purpose of the corporation 2019] "I've always thought that this was a little bit of a circular tempest in a teapot because in my mind companies need to be run for the medium to long-term interest of the shareholders."

24:23 -- On ESG and the latest "anti-ESG" trend.

25:45 -- How should [technology company] boards approach the current downturn.

29:46 -- On supervisory boards in Europe and the advantages (flexibility) of US corporate governance standards.

32:27 -- On tech companies staying private or going public. "There is a fair legitimate bias against going public now."  "We've got to be clear on whether some of our regulation of public markets is worth the candle." "[But] the American economy [to be the dominant force in the world] needs both the public and private markets."

36:23 -- On private equity boards. [For extra background, see Boards 3.0 by Profs Gilson and Gordon]

40:07 -- On founder-led companies and the practice of dual-class share structures.

41:35 -- Her pitch for more lawyers on boards: "Lawyers are often phenomenal directors." "A good strategic lawyer should be a requirement on every board [but that's not how the current board world sees it]."

44:47 - What books have greatly influenced your life: 

1. Good to Great, by Jim Collins (2001)
2. Start Where You Are, by Pema Chodron (2001)

46:01 - Who were your mentors, and what did you learn from them?

1. Her mother and sister.
2. Toni Rembe
3. Margaret Gill

46:43 -  Are there any quotes you think of often or live your life by? 

"Don't believe your thoughts until you really look at them."

46:53 - An unusual habit or an absurd thing that she loves: meditation (she's been doing it for 40 years)

47:46 - The living person she most admires: "A group: the women who were first into their professions"

Mary Cranston is a seasoned corporate director and attorney. She is the retired CEO and Chair Emeritus of

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