14 ways a board seat will help your career
From your growing confidence and communication skills to big-picture thinking,
here are 14 ways that taking a board seat at your company will help you in your daily duties and in your
career progression, based on our experience at Aurora 50 and our
conversation with Randall S Peterson, professor of organisational behaviour and academic director of the
leadership institute at London Business School.
Becoming a board director will make you better at your job, by…
1. Widening your professional network
Board assignments will extend both your professional and personal networks,
introducing you to senior leaders from within your organisation or group, and allowing you to connect with
the extended team around a company and its board. In time, if you become a non-executive director of a
board, you are also likely to gain exposure to people in other industries. The next time you need specific
expertise, you’ll know just who to call, something that could serve you well for the rest of your
career.
2. Building your business acumen
Boards are made up of big-picture, long-term thinkers. You’ll learn to
horizon-scan and build strategic thinking skills, a great new skill if your career has been focused on a
single functional role to date.
3. Teaching collaboration
Board roles are positions of great power and influence but they are also places”
in need of collaboration”, Dr Peterson says, as all decisions are collective rather than individual (as they
are in most managerial jobs). London Business School’s research, as well as that of others, shows that women
have more experience in approaching problems collaboratively – so managerial and board roles often play to
their experience and strengths.
4. Finessing communications skills
As a director, you need to be able to clearly speak up to communicate your
thoughts: boards consist of dynamic, intelligent individuals who spend limited time together and operate
under extreme time constraints, so your communication skills will be tested as you learn how to make the
most of the board’s time together – for instance, you will need to influence others when decisions are being
made or speak up to disagree for the board minutes. And, much like the culture of companies differ, board
dynamics differ. Some are highly formal and procedural while, on others, members actively challenge each
other and encourage debate. Being exposed to such highly complex environments will teach you a great deal
about yourself and how you engage with others: boards do not govern in a social vacuum.
5. Learning leadership
Better boards mean better businesses. Learning how to conduct yourself and have
an impact at the highest level requires a high level of maturity and independent thinking, and you will
constantly be learning leadership – skills such as good facilitation of a board meeting, to draw the best
out of each member.
6. Getting to grips with corporate governance
Corporate governance refers to all laws, regulations, codes, processes and
practices used to manage a company. It provides high transparency and accountability, and highlights the
company’s direction while proving its business integrity. Getting to know and lead the corporate governance
of a firm from its top table will help you understand the beating heart of your business’ processes and
operations, and to strive for its financial health and market competitiveness.
7. Understanding your company’s vision
8. Teaching better decision-making
Boards have a duty to solve complex and strategic challenges. As a director,
you’ll need to become adept at influencing, giving opinions and perspective from your own experience, to
ensure well-informed, high-quality decisions are made as a group. This will help you make better informed
decisions more confidently and efficiently back in your own role.
9. Building a support network
Other directors you work with may be good sounding boards for your daily work
life issues, coming from different functions, viewpoints and sometimes organisations. They may even become
mentors for you as you progress.
10. Offering an opportunity to coach and mentor
Contact with junior board colleagues, or with members of the organisation’s
management team if you become an independent director, may give you the chance to become a coach and mentor
yourself.
11. Providing a fresh intellectual challenge
From dealing with mergers and acquisitions to cyber-security and sustainability,
you will be learning constantly as a board director. This huge opportunity to upskill will give you a deeper
understanding of a range of topics; there may even be the opportunity to get further training or
certifications in some areas.
12. Growing your personal brand
A role on your company’s board will show your professional credibility, is a
public endorsement of your expertise, and is an impressive addition to your CV and to your LinkedIn profile.
Dr Peterson says it will increase your profile significantly and likely make you a public figure within the
business.
13 .Making you better at your job
Of course, board service as an executive will help you become a better executive
in your day job too. You’ll get to understand how the board can help you as a management team, while knowing
what they will question will make you a more productive and impactful member of the executive. You may also
come into contact with board directors who work for other organisations, and learn how those organisations
manage their business and competitive landscapes.
14. Giving you confidence
Finally, with all this new knowledge, you will know just what to ask and who to
ask. That will become a key contributor to board discussions as well as in your everyday work.
Pathway20 is Aurora 50’s flagship initiative to increase female board-level
representation in the UAE. Peer-to-peer learning connects women with other new executive directors and
introduces them to external independent directors, helping both future board directors and the
organisations they work for. Please do get in touch for further
information.
