Agency Governance A new era in governance has been ushered in across the world, in all sectors and industries, in the past decade, spearheaded by:

• Britain’s Cadbury Report, which defines governance as “the system by which organizations are directed and controlled”, and calls on “boards of directors to take responsibility for the governance of their firms”
  
• Canada’s Dey Report, “Where Were The Directors?”, calling on boards to “explicitly assume responsibility for governance” including “leadership, stewardship, risk management and information”
  
• The U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires boards and three core committees (Audit, Governance, Compensation) to take direct responsibility for critical elements of oversight and control