The composition of boards is dominated by three jobs - CEO, chief financial officer or company secretary - with just 2.3% of board members coming from other sectors of the business, shows the latest Protiviti research into boards.

The report suggests that executive board member composition has not kept pace with regulatory changes over the last decade, with boards being tasked with far more than just ensuring compliance and financial results.

Currently, only 81 executive members across almost 4,800 executive board seats hold positions outside of CEO, CFO or company secretary.