Abstract

This article provides an overview of the impact of Covid-19 on organisations from a corporate governance perspective and the possible mitigation of such impact by applying the Principles in the King IV Report on Corporate Governance for South Africa 2016 (King IV). The article highlights how these fundamental philosophies, concepts and aspects of corporate governance have been considered and incorporated into King IV and how their application could, firstly, serve to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 on organisations and, secondly, enable it to position itself better going forward, to ensure the correct strategy, business model and sustainable value creation in the most optimal and efficient manner, ie across the six capitals, given the current situation and outlook for the future. The article also touches briefly on the institutional shareholder role, the evolving world of ESG, responsible business, and stakeholder inclusivity. Engagement with and the impact of stakeholders, particularly given the failure of organisations and their dependency on stakeholders, including shareholders in many instances, are discussed. Key ideas: Covid-19; King IV; stakeholders; shareholders; strategy; corporate citizenship; triple context; six capitals; information and communications technology (ICT); institutional investors; responsible investing; risk management, assurance, disaster recovery, business continuity; environment, social and governance (ESG)