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Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein

Boardroom Governance with Evan Epstein

By: Evan Epstein
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 In-depth interview podcast with leading corporate governance experts, including world-class founders, scholars, board members, executives, investors and more. The content is structured as a long-form conversation to explore not only the latest corporate governance trends, but also to get some personal insights from some of the best and brightest minds behind America's boardrooms.2020-2025 Boardroom Governance Economics Leadership Management Management & Leadership Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • Richard Blake: Key Takeaways from the 2025 Silicon Valley 150 Governance Report

    Richard Blake: Key Takeaways from the 2025 Silicon Valley 150 Governance Report
    Dec 15 2025

    (0:00) Intro.

    (1:27) About the podcast sponsor: The American College of Governance Counsel.

    (2:14) Start of interview. *Reference to prior episodes/reports with Richard (E126 from Feb 2024 and E158 from Dec 2024)

    (3:11) AI dominance in public and private markets

    (4:14) About WSGR's 2025 SV150 Corporate Governance Report. Major Findings in DEI Disclosure (impact on board diversity)

    (12:25) Broader ESG Changes and Challenges to SEC Climate Disclosure Rule

    (16:03) California approach to climate risk disclosures (SB 253 and SB 261) and greenhouse gas emissions disclosure

    (19:04) State vs. Federal Regulatory Landscape

    (21:13) On SEC's change of policy relating to mandatory arbitration bylaws

    (23:41) SEC Changes Under Chair Atkins: changes in exec comp disclosures and removing quarterly reporting

    (27:18) SEC Changes to Rule 14a-8 proposals

    (29:23) On Lack of Minority Party SEC Commissioners

    (32:30) Delaware vs. Other States on Corporate Incorporations

    (39:26) Other findings from the 2025 report. Including on dual-class shares and sunset provisions.

    (41:12) The State of Private Markets, IPOs and VC

    (49:55) Biggest winner in business in 2025

    (50:55) Biggest loser in business in 2025

    (53:00) Biggest business surprise in 2025

    (54:32) Best and worst corporate governance trend from 2025

    (58:18) What’s the biggest corporate governance trend to watch out for in 2026

    Richard Blake is a partner at Wilson Sonsini and the leader of the firm's public companies’ practice.

    You can follow Evan on social media at:

    X: @evanepstein

    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/

    Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/

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    To support this podcast you can join as a subscriber of the Boardroom Governance Newsletter at https://evanepstein.substack.com/

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    Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • Michelle Leder (Footnoted): Uncovering Hidden Risks in SEC Filings

    Michelle Leder (Footnoted): Uncovering Hidden Risks in SEC Filings
    Dec 8 2025

    (0:00) Intro

    (1:21) About the podcast sponsor: The American College of Governance Counsel

    (2:08) Start of interview

    (2:36) Michelle's origin story

    (4:33) The Origins of Footnoted (started in 2003)

    (6:36) Understanding SEC Filings and Disclosures

    (7:20) The "Friday Night Dump"

    (9:34) The State of Public vs. Private Markets

    (12:40) The Rise of Private Markets and Challenges of Public Markets

    (18:43) Red Flags in SEC Filings

    (22:03) The Evolution of Executive Compensation and Elon Musk's Comp

    (28:53) Egregious Corporate Governance examples: Sketchers.

    (30:08) The problem of Related Party Transactions.

    (31:37) Independence and Compensation of Board Members

    (32:36) Quote of Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett on this topic

    (36:33) Are we in a AI bubble? Similarities with Enron/Worldcom era?

    (40:18) Reference to my article on AI washing

    (41:43) The Importance of SEC Changes (only 3 commissioners from a single party)

    (43:22) The Role of Markets in Everyday Life

    (47:45) Books that have greatly influenced her life:

    1. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair (1906)
    2. Germinal by Émile Zola (1885)
    3. Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner (2021)

    (48:20) Her mentors: Nell Minow, Diana Henriques, and Thornton O'Glove.

    (49:19) Quotes that she thinks of often or lives her life by: "Don't Postpone Joy"

    (50:52) An unusual habit or an absurd thing that she loves.

    Michelle Leder is the founder and editor-in-chief of footnoted.com, a source for uncovering important information hidden deep in SEC filings.

    You can follow Evan on social media at:

    X: @evanepstein

    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/

    Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/

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    To support this podcast you can join as a subscriber of the Boardroom Governance Newsletter at https://evanepstein.substack.com/

    __

    Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
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    53 mins
  • Erik Lie: Catching Cheats, Fraud Detection, and the Board’s Evolving Role

    Erik Lie: Catching Cheats, Fraud Detection, and the Board’s Evolving Role
    Nov 24 2025
    (0:00) Intro(1:30) About the podcast sponsor: The American College of Governance Counsel(2:16) Start of interview(3:01) Erik's origin story(6:10) His role at the Tippie College of Business at the University of Iowa.(7:49) Exploring his book Catching Cheats(9:39) About the field of forensic economics(11:00) The Challenge of Private Market Data and Fraud *Reference to our Startup Litigation Digest(16:24) Board Responsibilities in Fraud Detection(19:03) Challenges for private company boards(21:22) Insights and red flags from the Madoff Case(26:30) Insider Trading and Its Challenges(31:29) The Role of Whistleblowers in Fraud. Reference to E142 with Tyler Shultz and E130 with Mary Inman (whistleblower attorney)(35:44) Cultural Perspectives on White-Collar Crime(39:59) The Intersection of Vision and Fraud(41:27) Fraud problems in academia(44:00) The Impact of AI on Fraud Dynamics *suggested read: The Trillion Dollar Governance Reckonings(49:46) The role of directors in the stock backdating scandals "they were happy beneficiaries"(51:03) Books that have greatly influenced his life:Animal Farm by George Orwell (1945)Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (1997)(53:45) His mentors *discussion about the Norges Bank Investment Mgmt Fund ($2T AUM) and its ethical issues.(56:23) Quotes that she thinks of often or lives her life by.(57:10) An unusual habit or an absurd thing that she loves. (58:08) The living person he most admires: Bill Gates.Erik Lie is the Amelia Tippie Chair in Finance and Professor at the Tippie College of Business at the University of Iowa. His new book, Catching Cheats: Everyday Forensics to Unmask Business Fraud, offers a compelling look at how forensic economics and data-driven analysis can help identify wrongdoing that remains hidden in plain sight. You can follow Evan on social media at:X: @evanepsteinLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/ Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/__To support this podcast you can join as a subscriber of the Boardroom Governance Newsletter at https://evanepstein.substack.com/__Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
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    1 hr
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