"In 1976 John Argenti clearly identified six symptoms of corporate collapse. This list is close to being universally accepted as inarguable truths. Argenti defined the symptoms as:

One-man rule: Any one person (man or woman), cannot possess the wisdom to do what is best—indefinitely. Everyone has a "best before" date. Argenti is a strong believer that absolute power corrupts, absolutely.

A non-participating board: This, perhaps more than any other factor, can signal the failure of corporate governance. A non-participating board will spend as much time on the wording of a document as it will on issues of strategic importance. A non-participating board will not challenge, and will fail to ask thought-provoking questions.

An unbalanced top team: While it is understandable that people like to work with people of similar backgrounds, temperament and interests, diversity is key to serving the needs of the various stakeholders.

A lack of management depth: Directors must have sufficient understanding of both the internal organization and the external stakeholders in order to be able to ask the right questions, to envision the future. Experience—that is, broad-based experience—is important.

A weak finance function: Business is still business, and no organization can sustain itself for any length of time if no one is monitoring the cash flow. It is not enough to worry about profit. And, in fact, focusing on short-term profits often is a critical strategic error. Cash, asset and risk management are critical to long-term sustainability.