Joe Hurd: Governance in Times of VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity)

Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein

(0:00) Intro

(1:26) About the podcast sponsor: The American College of Governance Counsel

(2:13) Start of interview

(2:45) Joe's origin story

(4:07) His early career starting in London, with law firm Linklaters.

(6:43) His move to Friendster in Silicon Valley.

(8:00) His time at Videoegg.

(9:24) His time at the International Trade Administration in the Obama Administration.

(11:30) His return to private practice with Gannett and Facebook's emerging products.

(13:10) His operating role at SOSV, a global venture capital firm (2019-present)

(15:10) How he got started with his board service. First board experience: a UK public company called GoCompare.

(16:50) Difference between a "good" and a "great" director.

(18:34) Distinguishing the concept of overboarding between public and private VC-backed companies. Reference to VCBA (5/14/25)

(21:06) Some differences between U.S. and U.K. governance practices.

(24:57) On the increasing politicization of corporate governance, including ESG and DEI (plus boardroom diversity). "Let's bend it, not end it."

(27:47) The origin story of the bio books that he compiles.

(31:07) On the impact of AI in the boardroom. Boards need to 1) move faster on AI, and 2) focus on the transformation, not only the tech.

(35:50) On navigating in VUCA times (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity). "Act proactively, not reactively"

(38:18) Challenges for boards in next 5-10 years: 1) time management and 2) increasing focus on director skill sets.

(35:50) On navigating the regulatory landscape in VUCA times (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity).

(41:27) On board evaluations.

(46:00) Will governance regulations harmonize internationally? Example: climate change disclosures.

(49:15) The UK's approach for boards to engage with employees: workers' council, board representation, or DNEDs.

(46:00) Will governance regulations harmonize internationally? Example: climate change disclosures.

(51:50) Books that have greatly influenced his life:

1. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (1936)
2. Range, by David Epstein (2019)

(52:38) His mentors: Barry Williams (E153)

(54:13) Quotes that he thinks of often or lives his life by. "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle" and "I never lose, I either win or learn."

(56:27) An unusual habit or an absurd thing that he loves.

(57:10) The living person he most admires.

Joe Hurd is a purpose-driven public company board director and strategic advisor who focuses on digital transformation, international expansion and stakeholder engagement.

You can follow Evan on social media at:

X: @evanepstein

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/

Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/

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Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License