Private Company Director’s Directors to Watch 2026 highlights 29 significant and diverse directors who have contributed to and will continue to expand ongoing dialogue on board best practices and corporate governance excellence.
Andrew Shapiro
Lawndale Capital Advisors
Andrew Shapiro is CEO of Lawndale Capital Advisors, where he advises boards and investors on governance, shareholder engagement, capital allocation and special situations. Drawing on decades of experience as a longtime activist fund manager, he brings an investor mindset to boardroom strategy. He has served on boards of public and private companies across diverse industries and company stages and chaired governance, finance and official bankruptcy committees. Shapiro is an NACD Directorship 100 honoree and board leadership fellow, and a Private Directors Association-certified director. He has taught at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and at UCLA Anderson’s corporate governance program, and is a former member of the Council of Institutional Investors’ Corporate Governance Advisory Council. He is also a qualified audit committee financial expert.
Shapiro is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors and Private Directors Association.
Independence enables outcomes. “On private boards, especially family-controlled boards, the real work is moving from personality-based governance to disciplined decision rights that survive succession. Owners must be passionate about empowering independent directors so they are not stage props and ensuring boardrooms where owners and management test ideas through transparent debate and constructive dissent. That means a lead independent director who helps set agendas, executive sessions at every meeting, and direct reporting lines from auditors and counsel. You know governance is working when outcomes improve. Examples include better financing terms, faster aligned decisions and a CEO who brings tough issues to the board early.”