????萬事達卡公司（MasterCard ）CEO彭安杰與非執行董事長理查德?哈森維特是一對黃金搭檔。彭安杰出生于印度，曾在花旗集團（Citigroup）、百事（Pepsi）和雀巢（Nestlé）任職，目前在紐約工作。哈森維特是一名英國人，在石油、科技和混凝土行業擁有豐富的經驗，目前的工作地點是倫敦。雖然兩人相隔遙遠，但兩人定期通過電子郵件保持聯系，連彭安杰自己都說，他對兩人之間通信的頻率已經不再做記錄了。在與《財富》雜志（Fortune）的電話訪談中，他們互開玩笑，對彼此的全局觀不吝溢美之詞。本刊一再要求彭安杰評價一下兩人之間的關系，但他堅持認為，哈森維特主要是作為他與公司董事會之間的協調者，而不是他個人的盟友。

????也難怪彭安杰和哈森維特對兩人的合作會如此輕描淡寫。畢竟，作為一名非執行董事長，首先就要保持獨立，忘記作為CEO密友的身份。但原則上來講，這兩位公司領導人都必須朝著相同的目標努力：努力維護公司股東的利益，確保公司管理井然有序，同時還要收集公司其他董事的建議和反饋。

????要想在共同治理和保持自主之間實現平衡并非易事。實際上，許多公司根本就不愿意進行這樣的嘗試；調查公司Equilar指出，一半以上的美國大型公司，CEO和董事長職位均由同一人擔任。而且，投資者對這種做法也沒有意見：以摩根大通（J.P. Morgan Chase）和百事為例，今年五月中旬，這兩家公司的股東都投票否決了撤銷公司CEO兼任的董事長一職的提議。

????《財富》雜志高管夢之隊（ Executive Dream Team）系列活動致力發現各大公司中由董事會成員和高管成員共同組建的成功聯盟。作為這個系列活動的一部分，我們要求彭安杰與哈森維特簡要介紹一下，他們如何維持CEO與董事長之間微妙關系。他們的答案是：小心駛得萬年船。

????其實哈森維特的方法用一句名言來說就是“信任，但需驗證。”哈森維特是一名經驗豐富的董事，同時還在鐵路網公司（Network Rail）擔任非執行董事長。鐵路網公司是英國一家管理鐵路基礎設施的私營公司。哈森維特非常清楚，非執行董事長根本不可能阻止公司或董事會做出錯誤的決策。實際上，在英國，獨立董事長是一家公司的標準人事配備，然而英國石油公司（BP）的教訓告訴我們，獨立董事長根本無法阻止公司危機的發生。“彭安杰很清楚，我會給他最大限度的支持——除非我不想這么做。”

????MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga and Richard Haythornthwaite, the company's nonexecutive chairman of the board, make a great pair. Banga, an Indian-born executive who has worked at Citigroup (C), Pepsi (PEP), and Nestlé, is based in New York. Haythornthwaite, a Brit with experience in the oil, tech, and cement industries, works in London. Despite their lack of proximity the two men e-mail each other so regularly that the CEO says he no longer keeps track of how frequently they correspond. In a telephone chat with Fortune, they banter, each praising the other for his global perspective.

????When pressed to expand on their relationship, though, Banga insists that Haythornthwaite acts chiefly as a facilitator between him and the board -- not as his ally.

????You can't blame Banga and Haythornthwaite for downplaying their collaboration. A nonexecutive chairman, after all, is meant to be an independent, not the CEO's chum. But both leaders, in principle, should be working toward some of the same goals: looking out for the interests of the company's shareholders, ensuring the business is well managed, and soliciting the advice and feedback of other corporate directors.

????Striking the right balance of collegiality and autonomy isn't easy. Indeed, many companies don't even try; at more than half of big U.S. corporations the CEO and chairman are the same person, according to research firm Equilar. And investors seem fine with this: In mid-May, for example, J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM) and Pepsi shareholders voted down proposals that would have stripped those companies' CEOs of their chairman roles.

????As part of Fortune's ongoing Executive Dream Team series, which will look at successful alliances in the boardroom and C-suite, we asked Banga and Haythornthwaite to offer a glimpse of how they navigate the delicate CEO-chairman relationship. Their answer? Carefully.

????Haythornthwaite's approach is a variation of the axiom "Trust, but verify." A seasoned director who also serves as nonexecutive chair of Network Rail, a private company that manages railroad infrastructure in Britain, he readily acknowledges that a nonexecutive chair doesn't insulate a company or a board from bad decisions. In fact, independent chairs are standard in Britain, but they didn't prevent corporate crises at BP (BP), for example. "Ajay knows I will back him to the hilt -- unless and until I don't."