Are you ready to transition from senior management to the board of directors?

– By Donna Price –

At the beginning of my career, over 40 years ago, the board of directors was an enigma. I understood that the board held significant decision rights over fundamental change transactions such as mergers or acquisitions. I understood where the board sat within a decision matrix alongside other key stakeholders. I was familiar with the board’s statutory duties and performance standards offered in various federal and provincial corporate statutes and common law. That knowledge gave me a sterile, functional understanding of the board role!

I became a dedicated student, observer, critic, coach, champion, and professional of governance and, more recently, a career strategist for individuals who aspire to serve on a board of directors. I discovered the board as a dynamic human operating system, a critical governance contributor, and, to varying degrees, a value-added contributor to the organization’s purpose, mission, and vision.  I also discovered that if the director role is poorly executed, it can destroy value.  For ease of reference, an individual who serves on a board is a ‘director,’ and the collective unit of directors is referred to as a ‘board’ or ‘board of directors.’

The board provides direction and oversight to ensure that shareholder/member interests and the interests of the broader group of stakeholders are appropriately managed by providing oversight and accountability for the organization. Some individuals covet membership on a board of directors because it is a prestigious role, frequently perceived as one of the hallmarks of an accomplished career. This often reflects the norm that directors wield ultimate power (and considerable liability) over an organization’s business and the desire to contribute meaningfully and influentially to a purpose that resonates with them.

Staying informed about governance issues no longer resides solely within academia and scholarship; aspiring and serving directors and boards must keep up with an expanding range of topics.  Many remarkable economic and societal accomplishments rendered by organizations, whether for profit or not, coupled with well-publicized failings, provoke thoughtful consideration of board composition, purpose, and culture and ongoing deliberation on various corporate governance concepts.  Much has changed in governance and will continue to change.

Despite decades of increased scrutiny of board conduct, we are fortunate that the appetite for board experience continues to attract interest from many thoughtful, career and purpose-minded individuals.

As career strategists, we can support career—and purpose-minded individuals transitioning from management to governing roles in building their governance confidence, competency, and boardroom capital. We can also help new governance participants from underrepresented groups develop the confidence and knowledge to serve alongside those who already serve on a board.

At any point in a board career journey, readiness screening questions can help ignite and guide board career decisions. I offer a sampling of questions to ask of aspiring or experienced individuals to assist them in determining their current state of readiness to serve on a board:

1. Why are you interested in joining a (this) board of directors?
2. How do you differentiate managing from governing an organization?
3. What are your values as a leader?
4. What prior experiences have you had where you changed minds and ultimately influenced decisions?
5. What skills, connections, resources and expertise do you offer a board?
6. How meaningful to you are social interactions with other board members to tackle team dynamics for the board?
7. What do you believe to be your most significant contribution(s) to a board?
8. What kind of board member do you want to be?

Board service can be gratifying personally and professionally.

The saying that ‘no one size fits all’ is true in governance, and the readiness bar for board service will continue to rise.  Individuals aspiring to board roles can develop their boardroom skills by gaining board-relevant experience one board at a time and working with board career strategists and others to support them in fulfilling their aspirations.

You can learn more about governance from this handy governance briefing resource  – complete with technical information for business organizations on the OMAFRA website:  https://www.ontario.ca/page/guidebook-board-governance