In the second part of his article Roger Chao looks at the role of the Chair in promoting effective dissent in the boardroom for better decision-making.

However, surfacing dissent is only half the Chair’s work. The Chair’s real test is conversion ‒ turning divergence into a better decision, or at least into clearer conditions and stronger post-decision alignment. Boards often mistake discussion for conversion. They assume that because people spoke, the decision is robust. Yet dissent that is not converted becomes either residue (corridor doubt) or sabotage (quiet non-commitment). The Chair must ensure that every significant dissent either changes the decision or sharpens the conditions and monitoring that follow.

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