Chairman Office Operations Training Course: Board Liaison, Diary Control and Confidential Records

Programme Summary

The chairman office operations training course runs for two weeks for heads of the chairman's office, chiefs of staff and senior executive office managers, ending in an operations plan for one chair. A chairman's office carries the chair's time, papers and confidences, and it often does so by personal habit rather than by written method. The programme moves from the role of the chair to board liaison, diary control, correspondence, protocol, confidential records and continuity, using cases from listed companies, public bodies and family groups. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme on chairman office operations to mixed-organisation cohorts.

The Business Case

The chair's effectiveness depends on what reaches the chair, when it arrives and in what condition. Late board papers, crowded diaries, misfiled letters and loose handling of sensitive material cost the chair time and trust, and they expose the organisation to avoidable embarrassment. A written office method gives the chair a dependable service, gives directors a clear point of contact and lets a successor take over without loss.

• Board Preparation Quality: Improves as papers, briefings and actions follow a fixed cycle with named owners.
• Chair Time Use: Improves as diary control is tied to the chair's agreed priorities.
• Information Security Assurance: Improves as sensitive records are classified, restricted and tracked.

Principles and Evidence Base

• G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance: Describe the responsibilities of the board and its chair, and are applied in Sessions 1, 2 and 3.
• ISO 15489 Records Management: Frames the creation, control and retention of records, and is applied in Sessions 5 and 7.
• ISO/IEC 27001 Information Security Management: Frames access, classification and handling controls, and is applied in Sessions 7 and 8.

Intended Participants

• Heads of the chairman's office who answer to the chair for time, papers and discretion.
• Chiefs of staff who link the chair with the executive team and the board.
• Senior executive office managers who run diaries, correspondence and visitors for a board leader.
• Board liaison leads who work with the company secretary on meeting cycles and follow-up.

Typical settings include listed companies, public bodies, financial institutions and family-owned groups.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to diagnose the gap between the chair's expectations and the present service of the office.
2. Participants will be able to construct a board meeting support cycle with owners, deadlines and follow-up.
3. Participants will be able to prioritise diary requests and correspondence against the chair's agreed objectives.
4. Participants will be able to justify an information classification and handling scheme for confidential records.
5. Participants will be able to evaluate conflicts and sensitive requests and select an escalation route.
6. Participants will be able to design a chairman office operations plan that an office head can apply from the next working week.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Chairman Office Operations and the Role of the Chair

Which duties belong to the chairman's office, and what does the chair expect from it?

• Chair Role Profile
• Office Mandate Statement
• Stakeholder Influence Map
• Service Standard Charter
• Office Risk Register

Day 2: Board Governance Context

How does the board work, and where does the office fit within it?

• Board Duties Checklist
• Board and Committee Calendar
• Reporting Line Chart
• Chair and Company Secretary Interface Note
• Decision Rights Table

Day 3: Board Liaison and Meeting Cycles

How are board meetings prepared, supported and followed up?

• Agenda Preparation Timeline
• Board Paper Quality Checklist
• Pre-Meeting Briefing Note
• Meeting Support Run Sheet
• Action Tracker

Day 4: Diary Control and Priorities

How is the chair's time allocated against agreed priorities?

• Time Allocation Review
• Diary Request Triage Matrix
• Meeting Brief Template
• Travel and Itinerary Plan
• Clash and Change Protocol

Day 5: Correspondence and Briefing Packs

How do letters, requests and briefing material reach the chair in usable form?

• Incoming Correspondence Triage
• Drafting Standards Sheet
• Briefing Pack Template
• Response Tracker
• Speaking Note Outline

Day 6: Stakeholders, Visitors and Protocol

How are visitors, delegations and external contacts handled on behalf of the chair?

• Visitor Reception Plan
• Stakeholder Contact Register
• Hospitality and Courtesy Guide
• Delegation Visit Programme
• Gifts and Declarations Log

Day 7: Confidential Records and Information Security

How is sensitive information classified, stored and shared?

• Information Classification Scheme
• Records Control Plan
• Access Control Review
• Need-to-Know Distribution List
• Secure Handling Checklist

Day 8: Discretion, Conflicts and Escalation

How does the office protect confidence and deal with conflicts and sensitive requests?

• Confidentiality Undertaking Brief
• Conflict of Interest Register
• Sensitive Request Decision Tree
• Escalation Path Chart
• Incident Reporting Form

Day 9: Team, Handover and Continuity

How does the office keep working when people, or the chair, change?

• Office Team Rota
• Handover File Template
• Deputy Cover Plan
• Skills and Training Plan
• Business Continuity Card

Day 10: Chairman Office Operations Plan for One Chair

Do the board, diary, records and escalation documents form one plan the office can run?

• Applying the Session 3 Action Tracker
• Testing the Session 4 Diary Request Triage Matrix
• Reviewing the Session 7 Information Classification Scheme
• Checking the Session 8 Escalation Path Chart
• Completing the Chairman Office Operations Plan

Methodology

The programme uses a structured exercise method built on a shared case of a new chair who inherits a busy office with uneven records and an overloaded diary. Participants work through prepared papers, diaries and correspondence, then adapt each tool to the office they run, with time between the two weeks to test the tools at work.

• Suggested activity: Triaging a week of competing diary and correspondence requests against the chair's priorities.
• Suggested activity: Classifying a mixed folder of papers and deciding who may see each item.
• Suggested activity: Handling a staged sensitive request from a director and recording the escalation.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a chairman office operations plan for one chair. It holds a mandate statement, a board support cycle, a diary triage matrix, a classification scheme, an escalation path and a handover file. The plan is used at work to agree service standards with the chair, brief office staff and induct a successor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is chairman office operations training suitable for office heads new to supporting a chair?

Yes. Chairman office operations is taught through exercises and templates, assuming experience of senior executive support but no earlier post in a chairman's office.

Which standards does chairman office operations training rest on?

Chairman office operations training rests on the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance, ISO 15489 records management and ISO/IEC 27001 information security management.

How is the plan from chairman office operations training used at work?

You use the chairman office operations plan to agree service standards with the chair, brief office staff and induct a successor.

How does chairman office operations differ from general executive secretarial training?

Chairman office operations centres on board liaison, the chair's priorities and confidential records, while general executive secretarial training covers routine administration for any executive.