Experience overseeing the growing threat of cybersecurity risk is a key attribute boards will look for when appointing their next new corporate director, concludes the 11th annual "What Directors Think" survey, a report on boardroom trends. That same study finds boards still wrestling with how, and when, to encourage director turnover and bring in fresh perspectives.

The nationwide survey of close to 600 corporate directors, released by NYSE Governance Services and senior executive search firm Spencer Stuart, found that 20 percent of directors lack confidence in their board's understanding cyber-risks.  

It also found that a background in information technology was one of the top four attributes boards would look for when appointing their next new director, along with financial expertise, industry expertise, and CEO experience. Acknowledgement of the need to add new skills was reinforced by directors' views on the importance of periodically refreshing the board with new blood. Two-thirds of directors agreed that adding new perspectives and skills to the board was either “important” (51 percent) or “critically important” (16 percent).

Respondents overwhelmingly agreed that board assessment and evaluations are the primary tools for encouraging board refreshment, with 85 percent citing them as effective tools. Slightly less than half identified age ceilings as a useful, and 25 percent supported term limits.

These opinions, however, are not well-reflected in the reality of S&P 500 boards. Research by Spencer Stuart shows the number of new board appointees fell by 23 percent between 2008 and 2012. While there was a 16 percent uptick in the number of new independent directors elected to S&P 500 boards during the 2013 proxy year (339 directors), boards “continue to wrestle with the question of how to promote ongoing board renewal,” said Julie Hembrock Daum, North American board practice leader.

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