3 Challenges Aspiring Board Candidates Face and How to Address Them
Enormous attention has been focused on companies’ boards over the past 12 years. And right so, boards are responsible for improving, promoting, and advancing the objectives of the organizations they serve. They do this by providing strategic direction through a fiduciary duty to protect and grow the organization’s assets and advance the vision, mission and goals of the organization. This positions boards to be a highly visible symbol of the corporation. Investors also have an increased interest in boards and their composition. They expect boards to maximize effectiveness through meaningful processes and board member refreshment. With the desire for board refreshment, we are seeing an increased number of board seats available for first-time directors and individuals who have greater diversity in background, experience, and thought. Executive Recruiters are actively seeking roles to be filled by women and minorities, as well as executives outside of the C-Suite with new industry knowledge.
If you feel ready for a board position, here are the three common challenges that we see aspiring Board Members face and how to address them.
1. How to Understand Your Value
Boards are looking for a balanced portfolio of expertise, competencies, and skillsets that reflect the company’s needs to compete in today’s global economy and fill in gaps in the operating team. In today’s age of digitization, organizations are looking for tech savvy individuals that understand the digital marketplace and can manage cybersecurity. The most desirable candidates are frequently younger leaders who understand today’s business climate and the latest technology and market disruptors. Because of the unique goals and strategy each organization has, it is critical for executives to be aware of what expertise they bring to the table and how they add value to a board. While every organization has its unique qualifications for board members and skills required, there are a few common skills that make a board member successful. Here are the traits and competencies that you need to highlight to stand out in the sea of executives vying for a board position:
Traits to highlight:
Strategic: The ability to think strategically is a must on any board. Board members who can understand complex issues and make clear, objective decisions that aid the company in navigating new situations and an evolving business landscape. A recruiter wants to see that you can make sound decisions under the pressure of competing agendas. Further, the board is often responsible for advising the operating team in making management decisions, so being able to view a problem from all sides is crucial. A candidate has to demonstrate an ability to actively listen and interpret the views of others and connect the dots to deliver an opinion based on a more complete panorama of perspectives.
Adaptability:
Emotional Intelligence:
Team Player: Boards follow the age old saying, ‘there is no I in team.’ Recruiters want you to show that you are the type of leader who is willing to put aside differences and work as a unit with the other board members to best serve the organization. While they want leaders that will ask the tough questions and engage in important debates, it is crucial to have a group of board members who listen as often as they speak and actively learn from each other. Being able to display your aptitude at working with a team, especially under difficult conditions, will show the recruiter that you will be able to work with the other members and stay focused on the issues facing the organization as opposed to getting distracted by personal gains.
Competencies to highlight
Financial Literacy:
Digital Fluency:
Communication Skills:
2. How to Showcase Your Value
The best way to ensure your success during a board role search is to have a comprehensive set of career tools that will place you ahead of your competition, maximizing your unique skillset and unparalleled experience. The first and most critical step is increasing your visibility and highlighting the skills that showcase you’re ready for board service. Here are the tools we highly recommend:
LinkedIn Profile: The first thing your connections, recruiters and organizations will check or ask for when considering you as a potential candidate is your LinkedIn profile. It is essential that your LinkedIn profile is up to date, marketable, and fully optimized to make a meaningful impact on your target audience.
Executive Resume: Having a tailored executive resume that is focus on board opportunities and experiences that demonstrate a track record of success will get the attention of an executive recruiter. Recruiters are seeking candidates who can demonstrate they have successfully dealt with problems and added value throughout their career and can help the company reach their goals. Whether it’s a younger company seeking a board member with experience implementing rapid growth plans or a mature organization in need of audit experience, if you can demonstrate your past ability to achieve success you will show yourself as a valuable candidate.
Board Bio: A Board Bio should succinctly convey your value and leadership fit.
3. How to Pitch Your Value
As a candidate, you need to be able to connect with the mission of the company in order to serve it and help them stay true to it as they grow. It is also important to understand the cultural fit. The ability to fit into the culture and community of the company is one of the most important aspects of being on a board. Nothing builds up an organization better than a strong culture. Recruiters try to find candidates whose values and interests align with those of the company. But remember, you cannot try to force fit and a recruiter will be able to tell if you are not being genuine. In the end, it is best to be honest to who you are as an executive when presenting yourself for a board seat in order to find the best opportunity for you in the long run.
You should have your executive pitch and a board-readiness diagnostic prepared as well as interview preparation to ensure your executive search success.
With more and more board members remaining actively employed while serving on a board, companies want to ensure that you can give the necessary time and attention. Consider your current commitments to make sure that you will be able to balance everything before you start looking for a board position. And because of the long tenure of most board members, recruiters want candidates who will stay engaged for the long haul. You will also need to take into consideration any future obligations, both personal and professional. On your career documents, highlight activities and work responsibilities that were time commitments and long-term initiatives that you led.
While there are great benefits to joining a board, it is not right for every executive. If you are only looking to join a board solely for one of the following reasons, you may want to reassess if a board position is really the most effective way to achieve your goal:
Prestige If you are interested in joining a board solely due to the perceived prominence, it may not be worth the recognition it provides in the long term. Being a board director requires a lot of time and energy. It is a job with ethical, legal and fiduciary duties that can’t be taken lightly.
Compensation should never be the primary motivation for seeking a board seat. While large public firms offer substantial compensation packages to board members, many positions offer only minor compensation or in the case of non-profit, ask you to contribute.
Peer Pressure Don’t join a board simply because your colleagues are starting to serve on them. If you don’t have your own personal interest in obtaining a board seat, you probably won’t put in the necessary effort or enjoy the experience. Also remember, “you are known by the company you keep.” If you are on a dysfunctional board, this may affect your brand and reputation. Select each board position wisely.
Joining a Board for the right reason, can have a great deal of benefits. A board does not exclusively benefit the corporation but its own members as well. Outside of financial benefits, boards offer opportunities for individuals to: and gain new perspectives. including:
Expand Your Network. When you serve on a board with leaders who are passionate about making new connections, you will be able to expand your existing community of friends and colleagues, adding influential people with different backgrounds and insights. This new network can be an asset for the rest of your career when you are looking for new executive jobs, additional board roles, or simply to swap ideas with someone who has a different outlook than you.
Strengthen Your Executive Brand. Joining a board will boost your executive brand. It is an impressive addition which adds gravitas to any resume, CV, or LinkedIn profile. A board role also shows other executives and thought leaders in your industry that you are a front runner in your field and well-equipped to help shape the future of an organization. The additional exposure will have a positive impact on your visibility to executive search consultants and further assist them in understanding your unique value when sourcing potential board candidates.
Support Initiatives You Believe In. Whether you are honing the focus of an organization or supporting a new initiative, serving on a board can be a uniquely rewarding experience. Many individuals join a board as a way to give back or apply their talents in a new way. Nonprofit boards can provide an excellent opportunity to positively affect change or support organizations working towards a cause you are passionate about. Small private boards offer the chance to provide your specific knowledge or expertise to the organization to really make a difference to the company’s operation.
Supplement Your Income While compensation should never be the key motivator, we would be remiss in not saying it is a factor. Serving on a public or private equity board can serve to supplement your income.