The Secret Diary of a Company Secretary
This book is bold, funny, and uncomfortably true.
It’s drawn from real events behind closed boardroom doors – including hostage situations, executive meltdowns, sabotage, suicide, moral stand-offs, and even a naked shareholder.
It doesn’t just reveal what happens when decisions go wrong – it shows the human cost of silence, the messiness of doing the right thing, and the emotional toll of holding power to account from the inside.
This book brings corporate culture and ethics to life – not the legal detail, but the leadership breakdowns, ignored truths, and quiet acts of courage that echo through every organisation. Told through anonymised, diary-style accounts from those who’ve sat in the company secretary’s seat at FTSE companies, it’s more Bridget Jones or ‘The Help’ than boardroom manual – candid, compelling, and unmistakably real.
The Company Secretary should be the conscience of the company. The person who speaks last, listens hardest, and holds leadership to account.
Learn About
Governance and Leadership
What really happens behind closed doors
How influence works when no one’s watching
The ethical choices leaders can’t ignore
Lessons for directors, advisors, and future decision-makers
Why Future Leaders
Are Reading This Book
A must-read
for board directors.
Rose Marcario,
Former President & CEO of Patagonia, Inc.
A must for Chairs
CEOs, Board Directors and senior managers.
Erika surfaces the invaluable contribution of the Company Secretary. An easy to read desperately needed text.
Andrew Kakabadse
Professor of Governance and Leadership at Henley Business School and Emeritus Professor at Cranfield School of Management
This book brings a
vital role out of the shadows
Ram Charan,
Global Adviser to Boards and CEOs. Coauthor of best seller EXECUTION
A great addition to
the slim literature on this much misunderstood role
It opens the field to public scrutiny and is full of very human insights into the problems of the current role, and the potential joys of the future role as directors are being forces to professionalise and face regular assessment and development.
Bob Garratt,
Author of ‘The Fish Rots from The Head’
The Secret Diary
of a Company Secretary
is highly recommended for anyone looking to be on a board, or for those who are just curious what boardrooms are really like. Boardrooms are not what most people think they are, and the stories here beautifully illustrate the ‘truth can be stranger than fiction’ reality of being on a board, as well as the crucial role played by the company secretary in most boards. There are so many great lessons here for anyone looking to be a company director.
Randall Peterson PhD,
Professor of Organisational Behaviour, London Business School
Real-World Boardroom
Scenarios from Company Secretaries
For the professionals in the thick of it
This book is for those who operate in the grey – where rules end and real judgement begins.
You may not be the one making the final call, but you’ve shaped the thinking behind it, asked the hard questions, or ensured the record tells the truth.
It’s a reflection of a profession that doesn’t rely on ego, but on quiet integrity – one that leads through clarity, not noise.
For those reshaping what leadership looks like
For the boardroom veterans
For emerging leaders and business graduates
Not ready to buy?
Read a sample chapter
About the Author Erika Eliasson-Norris
Erika Eliasson-Norris FCG LLM is redefining corporate governance across the UK, US and beyond—bridging the gap between boardrooms, policymakers, and the next generation of leaders. A trusted voice in governance, her influence spans high-profile corporate advisory, government inquiries, and industry-wide reform.
As Founder & CEO of Beyond Governance, Erika has built an award-winning firm reshaping governance best practice globally. Recognised for her expertise, she was appointed by Sir Wyn Williams as the sole Governance Assessor to the UK’s largest public inquiry—the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry. Her career is defined by a relentless drive to unlock outstanding governance as the engine of business resilience and sustainable growth.
Youngest FTSE 250 CoSec at 32 Governance Assessor – Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry
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Suitable for MBA programmes, governance panels, and corporate offsites
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