Final answer:
The duties of the board of directors include setting company policies and objectives, approving budgets and financial statements, and overseeing the CEO's performance. They play a critical role in ensuring the company aligns with the shareholders' interests.
Step-by-step explanation:
The duties of the board of directors primarily include setting company policies and objectives, approving budgets and financial statements, monitoring the performance of the CEO, among other oversight responsibilities. They help ensure that the firm runs in the interests of the shareholders, who are considered the true owners of the company. The board usually has significant influence in decision-making processes that affect the overall governance and strategic direction of the company.
Items 1), 3), and 4) in the list are indeed core duties of a company's board of directors. While they may have influence on hiring decisions, especially at the executive level, day-to-day hiring and firing of employees is typically not handled directly by the board but rather by the company's management. Therefore, the answer to the student's question would be: Setting company policies and objectives (1), Approving budgets and financial statements (3), and Monitoring the performance of the CEO (4).