The Journey to the Board

March 2023

Joining a board of directors is not just a personal accomplishment, it's an opportunity to drive change, make a difference, and shape the future of the companies and communities we serve.

However, the journey to the boardroom can be challenging, especially for women.

At a trust session on March 2, 2023, we explored this process.

“What differentiates those who are most successful and elite from those who work just as hard and are just as educated and intelligent? Other than chance, it's their experience, network, and purpose.”

Confidence, Imposter Syndrome, and Being Underestimated

“Women are often fed seeds of misdirection throughout our lives and careers. We are fed limiting beliefs that restrict us to dreaming small. After years of being told these underestimations, these ideas grow with us; the seeds of misdirection mature as we do and grow into tall trees of what we now call imposter syndrome.”

• Nervousness around the board cues to other board members that you have a lack of confidence in what you’re doing

• Especially when seeking technologists, board members want someone who can make them feel calm.

• Forcing yourself through the nervous loop of all that discomfort to feel calm and authentic takes courage and is a valuable skill.

• Women tend to rate themselves as a 1 or 2 (out of 5) on a skills matrix

• That fear of not being good enough often carries into the boardroom

• Pinpoint and hone in on the things that you bring to the table

• Sometimes it can be advantageous to lack extensive board experience, as a fresh perspective allows you to notice or connect dots that others can't see

“Similar comments from multiple people don’t mean that we're repeating each other; it means we're reinforcing each other.”

Building your Toolkit
Updating your portfolio, resume, and/or CV for board consideration

"The resume you’ve used for operational or executive jobs will probably not get you the board position because the role is quite different…”

• A board member's role is oversight, guidance, and sharing experience.

• The management team runs the company day-to-day, with different skills than what’s needed in a board member.

• A board role is a very “eyes on, hands off” approach

• Common resume mistake: writing 3 or 4 pages of every single thing you’ve done in your career, including entry level positions

• Focus on recent, executive, and relevant experiences

• Highlight experiences of working with other groups or boards of people doing committee work

• A board has a limited number of seats, and they often can't afford to have a whole lot of one-trick ponies on board. Consider other experiences that you may have to allow you to contribute in a number of different ways

• Avoid lower-level words or skills - the board will assume those if you list other higher-level experiences

• Focus on results – not what you did or how you did it, but what you accomplished

Board Attitudes, Focus, and Concerns

“Boards today worry about supply chain disruption, human capital, quiet quitting, activist investors, cybersecurity or cyber insecurity, and revenue recognition.”

• Understanding what boards worry about allows you to tailor your outcomes and experiences to connect with their values.

• Let board members see you understand their concerns, and they’ll see your results in those areas.

• As a board member, you’re often connecting the dots.

• E.g., ‘How do [supply chain shortages] connect to other issues?’

• Show in your CV that you’ve had experience connecting the dots at a higher level, e.g., connecting the supply chain shortages to how it impacts sales or quality

“It’s a stressful time to be on a board. Many leading financial strategies have never held a position of power during a recession. My advice would be to learn everything you can from people who have been there and done that because they’re the only people with actual experience.”

Flip the Switch
Thinking about “what I have to offer” rather than “what I have done.”

“During an interview for a board position, a CEO asked if I could contribute in ways other than my primary field of expertise. His question made me consider how much that, while you’re in a C-suite, even if you’re not responsible for the problem at hand, you find yourself in the middle of the problem. You’re involved in the decision process and learning from all of it – decisions regarding financial, organizational, and marketing issues. You actually know more than you think.”

• Get internal clarity on the types of environments (as opposed to just industries) you would like to work in

• What gives you energy rather than drains it from you?

• Are you interested in an early- or mid-stage company that will scale dramatically?

• Do you like working with organizations that are global-scale-minded?

• Connect to the purpose of the organization

• Learn how to be calm and get centered in a crisis

• Know what lens you use to look through the world; how is it different from the viewpoints of others? This is an advantage.

• Increase or solidify your financial literacy before you interview for a board role.

Networking

“None of my current 6 board positions were obtained through executive search, and 4 didn’t even ask for my CV – that’s how important a network is.”

“Use your extended network (LinkedIn can be helpful for this) to look for connections. I took a course at the National Association of Corporate Directors and found I had a distant connection to someone on the board. He ended up recommending me for a position and provided valuable insights on internal structures.”

• Over 70% of public board roles are sourced through networks

• Occasionally public companies use recruiters to increase diversity and the number of women involved

• The most important thing you can do right now is spend time with board members in your network, even in informal settings

• Make sure people who are powerful in your network know that you’re interested in the board assignment

• Don’t ask them for introductions

• Ask them, “What’s the best piece of advice you would give me?”

• Validate the person you’re asking for advice

• Keep in mind all boards are different, and all advice is not universal

• Do your homework when you’re going to someone for advice

• When people approach you and haven’t done their research, you can tell

• “Hope is not a strategy to getting on a board.”

• Spend time getting advice from women in technology, digital data analytics, and cyber. Cybersecurity roles on boards are going to become mandatory, and boards are looking to increase their number of women in roles.

• The Private Directors Association is dedicated to educating others on preparing for board service, with many networking opportunities.

Starting Early

“I was lucky to have CEOs who supported me doing boards while still working for them. I’ve always been someone who looks for more responsibility and talked with my boss about the importance of continuing to develop, even as a C-suite executive. I joined a second public board, which was excellent for my career. But I do want to stress it’s not easy and shouldn’t be attempted when you’re new in a position. My main piece of advice would be to plan as much as possible – career paths and board positions are not achieved by accident.”

• It can take a while to transition to becoming a board director, so it can be beneficial to start the transition while you’re still working in executive roles.

• It’s a myth that you need to be retired to get on a board

• Large companies usually have lots of smaller subsidiary things that have internal boards. These are not the same as an official board, but it helps to start building some resume material

• If you work in IT, consider seeking out opportunities on the advisory board of your vendors

• Consider your ideal board seat and involvement when career planning

• A board seat is not the kind of job you can go in and out of quickly. You must consider and protect many dynamics – shareholders, customers, employees, etc. Know that you're making a long-term commitment when you decide to take a board position

Cultivating a Growth Mindset

“Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win” - Sun Tzu, “The Art of War”

• Your mindset is about connecting the dots.

• It’s being crisp, it’s being clear, it’s knowing who you are

• Determine how you are going to add value, the work you want to do, and the work you don’t want to do

• Cultivate a growth mindset rather than a fixed mindset

• A growth mindset lets you say, “I know I have much more to learn. But I also have much more to contribute.”

• Finding confidence: “Not everyone knows what I know, and I don’t know what everyone else knows. But together, we can try to know everything, and I can contribute to that”

• Suspend your disbelief and break the pattern of believing you are not good enough.

• Have confidence in your tool kit, your knowledge, your network, and your purpose.

• Seek continuous improvement

• You can’t only come alive when the board talks about your specialty field; you also must come alive in other parts of the business conversation.

• With continued growth and education, you offer more expertise

• Focus on striking the perfect match between what you want, what makes you happy, and what helps you to contribute successfully. When those values are aligned with a position or opportunity, everything else will come; you’ll get other calls, and people will recognize your contributions and recommend you to other people. Be incredibly selective.

Book recommendations

Win When They Say You Won’t - Daphne Jones
Be Board Ready - Betsy Atkins
Boards That Lead - Ram Charan, Dennis Carey, Michael Useem