On the 2026 Board Agenda

Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance (Jan 14, 2026) "On the 2026 Board Agenda" by John Rodi, Anne Zavarella and Patrick A. Lee of KPMG LLP argues disruption, volatility and uncertainty will continue to test board agendas in 2026 — citing economic uncertainty, recession risk, the cost of capital, advances in artificial intelligence, elevated cybersecurity risk, climate severity and policy gridlock. A significant focus is GenAI risk, which the authors list as inaccurate data and results, cybersecurity, data privacy and security, compliance with domestic and global AI-specific laws and regulations, intellectual property and reputational exposures. As companies begin deploying AI agents, governance policies and guardrails need to be reassessed and modified. Useful framing for SEA mid-market boards drafting their 2026 work plan.