Case Studies
SO YOU WANT TO BE A NED…
The aims of the 30% Club are clear. Some companies are determined to hire women, some are not. We want to make sure they all do. However, in order to be appointed and then to be a success on a Board, women who seek to become NEDs need many different attributes. Here are the stories and shared experiences of six women who have succeeded as NEDs. The stories have common themes, provide a degree of realism and some pointers to avoid wasting time, do read them. Three particular points struck me, sometimes reading between the lines:
1. The Old Girl (or boy) Network
Much is made of the importance of networks. As you read through, it is clear that the networks that yield real results are where the contact was an ex-client, or a working colleague, in one case the HR Director of the firm or perhaps worked with you on a charitable venture or heard you speak in public on a relevant subject. Knowing you from direct working experience is what pays. So while all the other “networking events” are additive, it is the links created in full time employment that are golden.
2. Expertise and safety needed
A Board needs multiple skills but likes safety. A career in accountancy, consultancy, the law, HR or the various incarnations of marketing, finance are all good routes. Good headhunters who dominate the FTSE100 appointments, should be able to advise snappily whether your career is going to be of interest to boards and avoid wasting your time applying in vain. But Boards are careful and prudent in their appointments. They prefer a public name or a prestigious full time employer to enhance a high profile Board. If you are below the radar find ways to rise above it. Join a relevant Quango, become a recognised public speaker/expert writer… and make sure you have at least two strings to your bow.
3. Plan ahead- never too early to start
Although all six were very tactful on the subject of age, those that found it the most difficult (and these were all success stories), were those that “retired” and then tried via headhunters to become NEDs. If you want to become an NED start early and run it in tandem with a full time career. This may mean that you choose options along the way which play to points 1 and 2 above.
Please share your experiences –good and bad- and tips for others in the 30% Club.
