Comment on the following: Strategic Management is of paramount significance for a company secretary.

Answer 6(b) A Company Secretary is a Key Managerial Personnel and plays a pivotal role in ensuring best governance practices of the corporate world. In order to ensure that every activity of the business organization are conducted in a manner not harmful to the interests of the stakeholders, i.e. shareholders, employees, suppliers, government agencies etc. it is essential that a Company Secretary work as a strategist and not only, as a professional representing the company in compliance and legal matters... He is required to contemplate the future changes in the political, economic, social, technological and legal environment and its impact on the industry as well as the company per se. Further, the job of a company secretary is a balancing act, meaning that on the one hand he needs to take care of almost all the aspects of corporate affairs, i.e. acting as a mediator between the board and the shareholders, communicating with the outside world on various corporate issues, conducting of meetings and proper maintenance of its records etc. and on the other hand he is required to play a significant role of a governance professional thereby ensuring best governance practices in the company. A Company Secretary has to take care of the following critical facets of the business, i.e. Risk management; Assessing the Sustainability of an organisation; Contribution towards corporate vision and mission; Assessment of the magnitude of business competition; Guiding the company on the path of corporate social responsibility etc. Thus, it is clear that the role of company secretary encompasses almost all the functions which a top management official need to perform and in view of this, strategic management is of paramount significance for a company secretary.