Nice quote from the intro to the Higgs report 2002 - still true!

"Walter Bagehot famously wrote of the monarchy in 1867: “We must not let in daylight upon magic”. In the corporate boardroom, the importance of the non-executive director is recognised but their role, perhaps like that of the monarchy of old, is largely invisible and poorly understood. When corporate strategies fail or governance lapses, however, attention rightly focuses on the contribution of the non-executive director."