What Didn’t Work: Tongue-Tied at the Top

With these steps, the regents shifted their focus from the past to the future. Working apart from each other, the independent review committee and the governance committee reached very similar conclusions about how to improve governance at the Smithsonian. The committees’ recommendations included (1) full board review and approval of the secretary’s compensation; (2) periodic meetings of the full board without the secretary; (3) processes for regular communications between the regents and the CFO, chief legal officer, and inspector general; and (4) clear, appropriate policies for travel expenses.