Steve Lipin, the founder and CEO of Gladstone Place Partners, discusses how corporate governance has evolved through the lens of communications, investor relations, and crisis management. The conversation explores shareholder activism, M&A dynamics, and the growing impact of cybersecurity and AI on boardroom decision-making.
(0:00) Intro
(1:36) About the podcast sponsor: The American College of Governance Counsel
(2:23) Start of interview
(3:11) Steve's origin story
(5:05) His Journey into Journalism
(6:02) The Rise of Governance Movement
(7:00) Transformation of Board Accountability. Reference to the 1992 Board coup at GM and other historical changes.
(10:24) Communication in Governance
(12:25) Establishing Gladstone Place Partners
(15:00) Crisis Management and Board Roles
(17:34) The Importance of Investor Relations
(20:40) Current Landscape of Shareholder Activism.
(25:14) The Snap activism case. The impact of activism on companies with dual-class share structures.
(30:12) M&A Transactions, Delaware and DExit. The impact of Twitter's acquisition by Elon Musk. Reference to E201 with Leo Strine.
(34:47) The Ongoing Cybersecurity Challenge. Reference to Anthropic's new Claude Mythos.
(37:51) The Impact of AI on Governance. The case of Anthropic's dispute with the Pentagon. *Reference to evanepstein.substack.com and E204 with Eric Ries.
(42:50) AI's PR problem. The challenge of building data centers. The geopolitics of AI.
(46:30) Impact of job firings, due to AI?
(49:53) The state of ESG and DEI in 2026.
(52:05) Books that have greatly influenced his life:
(53:10) His mentors.
(54:00) Quotes that he thinks of often or lives her life by (Grateful Dead lyrics)
(54:24) An unusual habit or an absurd thing that he loves
(55:06) The living person he most admires
Steven Lipin is founder and CEO of communications advisory firm Gladstone Place Partners and a trusted advisor in the field of strategic, financial and corporate governance communications.