Board Shorts Podcast: Recent Episodes
Get on Board Australia
Most aspiring and emerging board members would describe themselves as a high performer. If you’re listening to this podcast, I would suspect that you would lean more towards high performing than not. All this to say, this episode is for you if you’re an aspiring board member (whether you want to join your first board, or you’re looking to take the step up to larger organisations, more sophisticated Boards, or into a paid board role).
My dear friend, Mark Gregory, has spent many years of his career working with high-performers like you; supporting them to transition into roles that they aspire to be in, whether as a student looking for their first career move, an elite athlete transitioning into life after sport, or supporting a seasoned professional into their next career evolution. I invited him onto the Board Shorts Podcast to talk about the process he uses to help people ‘see the label from inside the jar’, as he puts it. Like most of our conversations, we like to break up the seriousness with the occasional joke or segue into a totally different topic. Nonetheless, Mark always brings us back to the main point and makes it clear with colourful stories and analogies that we can all relate to.
About Mark Gregory
From a foundation in the UK Banking / Finance sector, with forays into Outdoor Pursuits and Expedition Training, his experience is strongly focused on the assessment and development of both individuals and groups. Since arriving in Australia, in 1996, Mark has developed links across community and commercial networks, assisting and managing a range of innovative programs. Having graduated with a Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology), from Flinders University, Mark is able to draw from robust frameworks whilst reflecting on extensive workplace experience. His Career Development roles continue his passion for navigating individuals through career decisions, ensuring they have tools and resources tailored to their chosen field. Working across high school and tertiary contexts gives Mark a full understanding of education and employment pathways, in a complex and dynamic labour market. Supporting Students from equity groups provided an opportunity to collaborate with both student support services and Employers. Since 2015 Mark has supported over 250 elite Athletes across two Olympic/Paralympic cycles, a home Commonwealth Games, and multiple World Championships.
Where do I find the right people for my NFP Board? How do I build a Board that is generous? Why can’t I find any good Board Members?
I often hear these questions from exasperated not-for-profit leaders, Chairs, and Board Members. It turns out that there is a better way to define, find, and recruit non-profit Board Members and Sabrina Walker Hernandez is an expert on this topic. She has previously been on the Board Shorts Podcast, and I invited her back to speak about finding the right people for your NFP Board.
This conversation with Sabrina covers all facets of defining and finding the right board members for your not-for-profit board, including how to switch-on Board Member giving, how to best recruit future Board Members to ensure generosity with their time, talent, and treasure, and the CEO and Chairs’ responsibility when it comes to building and maintaining a giving culture on the Board.
This is a short but jam-packed conversation with lots of takeaways for NFP leaders and Board Members. Grab your notebook or notes app and settle into this conversation with Sabrina Walker Hernandez.
About Sabrina
As a consultant and coach, Sabrina specializes in helping small businesses and nonprofits thrive by fostering meaningful relationships that directly impact revenue growth. Using the B.U.I.L.D. framework, Sabrina specializes in strategic planning, leadership retreats, board development, staff empowerment, and resource optimization. Her track record includes consistently delivering a remarkable 30% increase in revenue for the organizations that she works with.
She is a bestselling author with over 25 years of experience in nonprofit management, fundraising, and leadership. Among her successes is that she increased operation revenue from $750K to $2.5M and completed a $12M comprehensive capital campaign in the 3rd poorest county in the United States. She has facilitated numerous workshops with hundreds of nonprofit and business professionals. She is certified in Nonprofit Management by Harvard Business School.
Links Mentioned in this Episode
Sabrina’s Website | Supporting World Hope
Sabrina on LinkedIn
Optimising your NFP Board with Sabrina Walker Hernandez | Ep. 59
Emotional intelligence encompasses a set of skills that enable individuals to recognize, understand, and manage their own emotions and the emotions of others. Current thinking points to emotional intelligence (or, EQ) as being more important for leaders than raw intelligence (or, IQ) alone. In the Boardroom, the soft skills or EQ skills that the individual Board Members bring are critical to Board performance. They make the difference between an OK Board (one where the individuals may bring high IQs and low EQs) and a great Board (where individuals bring a power mix of IQ and EQ and use them to reach high-quality decisions).
How and why Boards can benefit from its members and the Board as a collective having greater emotional intelligence has been revealed in the recently-published book ‘Leading with Emotional Intelligence: a guide for Board Directors’. The author of that book Sanela Osmic is my latest podcast guest.
Sanela is the founder and Managing Director of Ethical Governance, helping organisations cultivate a culture of ethics and ensure sustainable success. Sanela’s journey from Bosnia to global impact, is one of triumph over adversity, culminating in her unwavering commitment to creating meaningful change in communities worldwide. With nearly twenty years of professional experience across multiple industries (including finance, professional services, disability, government and education), Sanela recognised the critical role that good governance plays in the success of an organisation. Over the years, Sanela has served on a number of Boards and committees, and has worked as a consultant and educator in the governance space.
Her book, ‘Leading with Emotional Intelligence: a guide for Board Directors’ provides practical advice on how Boards can develop and use emotional intelligence to navigate difficult situations, build stronger relationships, and make better decisions.
My conversation with Sanela gets into the heart of emotional intelligence in the Boardroom setting, clarifying what it is and what it isn’t, the five elements of emotional intelligence (starting with Self Awareness), how we can avoid false harmony and use emotion to reach better decisions as a group, the role each of us plays as individuals to contribute to a highly emotionally-intelligent culture, and, importantly, the role of the Chair in leading with emotional intelligence.
You’re listening to episode 81 part two of the a-z of corporate governance, covering N-Z. Hopefully you caught episode 80 where I covered A-M. This is the second part of the list. As I mentioned in episode 80, the idea for this series came about because of the frequent questions I am asked about various aspects of boards and corporate governance. To many people, the world of boards and governance seems to be opaque and closed off, where language is used as a way to keep people away from wanting to get into this level of corporate leadership.
So, we’re busting through this particular corporate veil by providing a non-exhaustive list of definitions of various aspects of corporate governance and board life, working our way through the A-Z of corporate governance. This episode covers N-Z, and episode 80 covered A-M. Let’s get into our NOPs…
https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/the-a-z-of-corporate-governance-n-to-z-ep-81/
I am frequently asked about the meaning of various board and corporate governance terms. To many people, this part of business seems to be opaque and closed off, using language as a way to keep people away from wanting to get into this level of corporate leadership. So, I’m here to help bust through this particular corporate veil by providing a non-exhaustive list of definitions of various aspects of corporate governance and board life, working our way through the A-Z of corporate governance. This episode will cover A-M, and episode 81 will cover N-Z (getting interesting when we get to W, X, Y, and Z!).
Let’s start our ABCs of corporate governance…
Links Mentioned in this Episode
Article: Corporate Governance Defined: Not So Easy
By James McRitchie for CorpGov.net
Book: Directors at Work: A Practical Guide for Boards
By Kiel, Nicholson, Tunny, and Beck
A recent conversation with an aspiring board member inspired me to capture my thoughts on this topic on the podcast. The focus of the conversation is a common situation that I see aspiring board members confront. Recording this episode will enable me to help more people work through this stage of their board career than I could get to by having a series of one-to-one conversations.
Aspiring board member Steve reached out to me via LinkedIn and asked to have a conversation about his intentions to get onto boards. He was just joining two volunteer-based boards and was considering completing a governance course in the new year with the view to securing two paid board roles thereafter. And this was all in the context of him transitioning his professional career into a portfolio career. This may sound similar to your board career or board ambitions; a desire to secure a paid board role and seeing formal governance education as the logical box to tick to be able to get to paid board roles.
In this episode, I share my recommendations to Steve (and to you) on a better way to approach your board career; one that will get you further, faster by actually going slower.
How to Set a Board Goal
Setting and Calibrating your Board Goal
Developing your Unique Value Proposition
Demonstrating your Unique Value Proposition
Networking for Board Success Workbook
See the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/what-to-do-before-seeking-a-board-role-ep-79/
’Tis the season to be attending many functions. But how do you choose which events, functions, and parties to show up to? And how do you get the most out of the events you are attending (i.e. to support your board ambitions)?
I share three questions to ask yourself so that you can use your board goals as a guide to choose which events you attend so that you’re not over-exerting yourself by going to every function you’re invited to. You’re being strategic with your time, money, and energy, and you will get further, faster with your board goals.
Links to Articles mentioned in episode:
How to Set a Board Goal: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/how-to-set-a-board-goal/
Five Considerations when Networking for a Board Position: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/five-considerations-when-networking-for-a-board-position/
Five More Considerations when Networking for a Board Position: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/five-more-considerations-when-networking-for-a-board-position/
If you would like to support the Stroke Foundation to prevent stroke, save lives, and enhance recovery, please visit https://strokefoundation.org.au/
See the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/leveraging-events-to-build-your-board-career-ep-78/
This episode was inspired by a recent conversation I had with a friend about her board career and the goals she has for it. We quickly got onto the topic of governance-centred courses, which is a common consideration for aspiring board members.
We also got onto the topic of board recruitment and the commonly desired and required attribute of candidates is that they can demonstrate that they have completed a particular governance-centred course, rather than focusing on the corporate governance experience or expertise gained through other avenues.
It became clear that there are two sides to the conversation about qualifications for board members: one from the aspiring board member perspective (when looking to join a board or further their board career), and one from the board perspective (when considering potential new board members).
So, that’s what is covered in this episode. I unpack:
- The perception that you need a qualification to be on a board.
- If there is a particular governance course you should invest in.
- Why a qualification doesn’t make someone a great board member.
- How to navigate a board’s candidate’s required/desired governance education/qualification.
- How your board goals influence your governance education investment, including actual board service.
- The important of a comprehensive board search strategy for aspiring board members.
- How boards can be clearer when communicating desirable board candidate attributes, particularly as it relates to corporate governance knowledge and application.
Find the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/qualifications-for-board-members-ep-77/
Jasleen Kaur and I dig into diversity and inclusion, what the state of the nation is regards to the work done so far, how organisations can make meaningful progress and impact, how to avoid tokenism, where to find diverse candidates (for your board or organisation), and how individual accountability and consequences are key in achieving desired inclusion outcomes. I didn’t want this to be another diversity and inclusion conversation; there’s a lot of those out there already (including episodes 61, 23, and 2 of this podcast). I asked Jasleen to share the grassroots thinking and approaches that any board can adopt to make real progress towards their inclusion and diversity goals. And if you’re wondering which comes first – diversity or inclusion – that’s the first question we tackle in this episode.
About Jasleen Jasleen is a Senior Principle in Gartner’s Human Resources Research and Advisory Practice, based in Sydney. As part of her role at Gartner (a global research and consulting firm), she partners with Heads of HR and their talent management teams across the world, to drive their strategic decision-making and implementation in areas of Diversity and Inclusion, Talent Analytics, Performance Management and Wellbeing, using Gartner's evidence-based research.
Connect with Jasleen on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasleen-kaur-she-her-hers-34809459/
Check out Gartner's articles on Inclusion and Diversity https://www.gartner.com.au/en/human-resources/insights/diversity-equity-inclusion
Find the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/how-to-do-diversity-and-inclusion-in-any-organisation-with-jasleen-kaur-ep-76/
I recently asked the members of my Board Talk Community what they felt is the most challenging part of STARTING their board journey. The majority of people responded that not knowing where to find board opportunities was their biggest challenge. So, I thought I would respond to that challenge in this episode because you may be feeling or experiencing the same challenge. To that end, I cover three places where you can find board opportunities: through advertisements, by using board recruiters, and through your network.
Download the Networking for Board Success resource: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/networking-for-board-success.pdf
Find the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/where-to-find-board-opportunities-ep-75/
Strategy and strategic planning are things that I see many boards struggle with. I feel like strategy is one of those things that you understand when you see it, but defining it is difficult. You know a good strategy when you see one, but getting to that point feels difficult, unclear, and challenging. Once you’ve gone through a strategic planning process, and have a strategy, the next thing to consider is execution – and getting that right is a whole other kettle of fish. So, to help clarify strategy – what is it, how it’s done, keeping execution on track, and measuring the right things, I’m thankfully joined by Simon Starr – a business coach and strategy facilitator for more than a decade. Simon simplifies the world of strategy and strategic planning with easy-to-understand and easy-to-apply concepts and definitions for any organisation. I learned a lot from this conversation, and I hope you do too. Connect with Simon https://www.hoodsweeney.com.au/about/directors/simon-starr-director-performance-coaching Find the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/simplifying-strategy-with-simon-starr-ep-74/
Every board needs a solid connection with their CEO. And every CEO needs a solid connection with their board. The Board-CEO relationship is dynamic and, done well, enables an organisation to be successful, sound, and solid. Done poorly, the organisation can reel from crisis to crisis; under-performing and drawing criticism from people inside and outside the organisation. It’s a tough place for a Board and organisation to come back from. Thankfully there are practices and principles that are simple to introduce and maintain to keep the Board-CEO relationship firing on all cylinders, even in the face of crisis or uncertainty. As a follow-up to a recent webinar I hosted for BoardPro about why every board needs a solid connection with their CEO (https://www.boardpro.com/resource-centre/webinars/why-every-board-needs-a-solid-connection-with-their-ceo2), I'm answering a handful of questions that weren’t answered during the webinar due to our limited time in the live presentation. And I thought what a great idea to bring back my ‘CEO whisperer’ (and my husband) Jerry Kleeman to give us the view from the other side of the table – I bring the board perspective, he brings the CEO perspective – and answer these questions with a wider lens than the pure governance view shared in my recent webinar.Some of the questions we answer:• What essential skills are required for CEOs to succeed in future?• How do you handle a board that continues delving into operational issues during board meetings?• How significant is a strong Emotional Intelligence for a CEO?• How do you get a CEO or Board Member to "realise" it's time to go, and what if they still don't?• What does the CEO do if you have a Board that doesn't properly understand the business?Thanks to our sponsor BoardProVisit boardpro.com/boardshorts and use the promo code boardshorts – all one word, lowercase – to get a 30-day free trial AND 20% off the price of your first year on any plan.Full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/building-a-solid-board-ceo-relationship-with-jerry-kleeman-ep-73/
There’s a quick, inexpensive, and easy tool that can help your Board to build its bench strength. That tool is a Board Skills Matrix. But before you tune out before you tune in, what I share in this episode is how to take this simple tool that many boards are using and beef it up to make it do double or even triple duty for your board and your organisation.
Board skills matrices are underutilised. There are simple ways that this tool can be used by boards to, of course, build a skills-based board, but also to increase board diversity, know when and which employees to hire, inform board members' professional development investment (time and/or money), and help direct your board and senior management succession planning and recruitment activities.
Whether it’s time to set, or refresh, your board’s skills matrix, this episode will help it to become a comprehensive and meaningful tool to establish and maintain a board that delivers high value to the organisation, and that impacts and influences other conversations aimed towards having the best (most effective, efficient, and committed) board for your organisation.
Full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/a-tool-to-help-y…h-strength-ep-72/
I started my board career in 2009 at a local sport club. Thirteen years later I am on the board of a national charity and have a business education aspiring and current board members on governance and thriving in the boardroom.
In this episode I share my board story: my board career journey, what I have achieved along the way, and what I’ve learned over this journey.
The three lessons I share at the end of this conversation – along with insights along my board journey – I hope inspires you to move forward with confidence in your board career journey.
Full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/my-board-story-ep-71/
Georgia Henry is the founder and CEO of Henry Reed, a specialist culture and leadership consultancy and advisory business that partners with organisations and people leaders to drive positive culture change for meaningful and measurable impact.
Georgia is on the Board Shorts Podcast to share her perspectives and expertise on organisational culture and, particularly, the Board’s role in changing, shaping, and keeping their finger on the pulse of their culture in the boardroom and the culture throughout their organisation.
As a culture expert with global knowledge and more than 30 years of experience in organizational culture, leadership, organisation design and human resources, Georgia understands how important the human experience of work is to the success of any business. Georgia blends this experience with her governance experience from the boards of global, national, and local businesses across diverse industries.
Our conversation explores the definition of culture (important because of the buzzword status that culture carries), how you can begin to understand the culture you have, how your organisation optimises opportunities for creating competitive advantage, mitigate risks from behaviours, and deliver improved financial and non-financial results through your culture; how your board begins to craft its own culture, along with your organisation’s culture; and how your organisation can leverage culture as a strategic advantage.
Connect with Georgia Website: www.henryreed.com.au Email: georgia@henryreed.com.au LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgiahenry-henryreed
Full Show Notes Here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/culture-in-and-beyond-the-boardroom-ep-70/
The board-CEO relationship is one that requires ongoing work to maintain optimal dynamics and desired outcomes. There are two perspectives to consider regarding where problems may originate. But, like with any relationship, ‘it takes two to tango’, so each side shares equal responsibility in keeping the board–CEO relationship firing on all cylinders. I share 14 of the main root causes of where the board–CEO relationship can go wrong, from both sides of the table. And, of course, practical suggestions on how they can be managed, overcome, or avoided.
• Creating & Sustaining a High-Performance Board (Webinar Replay + Whitepaper): https://www.boardpro.com/resource-centre/webinars/creating-sustaining-high-performance-boards • Leading Up and Down: the Dynamic Relationship Between the Board and CEO (Article): https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/leading-up-and-down-the-dynamic-relationship-between-the-board-and-ceo/ • Four Documents Supporting the Board-CEO Relationship (Article): https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/four-documents-supporting-the-board-ceo-relationship/ • The Keys to a Thriving Board-CEO Relationship | Ep. 68 (Podcast): https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/the-keys-to-a-thriving-chair-ceo-relationship-with-jerry-kleeman-ep-68/
Full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/where-the-board-ceo-relationship-can-go-wrong-ep-69/
I’ve invited a very special guest back to the podcast for this conversation; my husband Jerry Kleeman. Jerry is uniquely qualified to talk on this episode’s topic; he works extensively with CEOs (both business owners and hired guns), many of whom have a board to which they report. Often, Jerry helps his CEO clients work with and manage their Board, and in particular, their board Chair.
Jerry shares his insights from his 20 years of working with SME CEOs to dissect the ideal Chair-CEO relationship; know how to build the relationship using shared principles; create a regular Chair-CEO one-to-one agenda; identify where problems in the relationship manifest; and what to do if the Chair isn’t the best person to work closely with the CEO.
Questions I asked Jerry • Describe the ideal Chair-CEO relationship; what does it look and feel like for both parties? • What does a regular Chair-CEO one-to-one agenda cover? • Does the Chair act as a coach or mentor to the CEO? • Where do problems in the Chair-CEO relationship usually manifest? • Where can a Chair or CEO begin to establish a solid relationship? • What if the Chair isn’t the best person on the board to work closely with the CEO; What would you recommend?
Connect with Jerry LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerrykleemanbetterleaders/ Website: https://www.jerrykleeman.com/
A question that I am frequently asked by business owners and leaders is how do I put a board together? Of course, I have some recommendations about this; however, sometimes it pays to have an expert advisor – someone who literally wrote the book on it – to give a considered and comprehensive answer to this question. And this is a conversation not only for business owners looking to build their board; it’s also beneficial for aspiring board members to understand so that they can better position themselves for these opportunities. The book I am referring to is ‘Build Your Board, Build Your Business’ and the author is Barbara Clarke.Barbara and I discuss when it's time to start putting your board together; what are the motivations behind building a board; How to know when you need: A board or board member? An advisor? An employee? Or Something else? What the difference is between an advisory board and a governance board and when you need one or the other. Barbara also shares her ANCHOR model for building your board. We close the conversation focusing on people who want to get on boards and how they position themselves for the boards that these business owners are wanting to build.Find the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/build-your-board-build-your-business-with-barbara-clarke-ep-67
How do you write a board resume? Where do you start? What information do you put into it? I answer all of these questions for you and break down the board resume structure to give you some insights into the process, what boards are looking for and expecting from your resume, and small tweaks that can make a big difference and help you stand out from the crowd. This information will help you feel a little less overwhelmed and a lot more confident as you begin writing your board resume.LINKS MENTIONED IN EPISODEFive Steps to Build Your Board Resume Course: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/five-steps-to-build-your-board-resume/ Article: Five Things to Consider about your Board Resume Referees https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/five-things-to-consider-about-your-board-resume-referees/Podcast: Episode #53 Five Common Board Resume Mistakes and How to Avoid Them: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/five-common-board-resume-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them-ep-53/Find the show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/breaking-down-the-board-resume-ep-66/
Steve Bowman and I answer a series of questions submitted by the BoardPro community as part of a recent webinar that we participated in (find the replay here: https://www.boardpro.com/resource-centre/webinars/qa-everything-governance). Submit your question for a future Board Shorts Podcast episode: https://bit.ly/BoardShortsQuestionQuestions(06:02 - Ateel) What is the fine line [for the Board getting involved] in appointing Office Staff - e.g Business managers, Front office staff. Is it an operational matter? What are your thoughts? (11:28 - Michelle) What do you like to see in a board pack? How much before the meeting do you like to receive it? And how do you encourage people to read the board packs before each board meeting?(23:44 - Annette) We are currently making changes to our Agenda Template. Looking for information on best practice Agenda layout and specifically how to relate agenda items to the Strategic Plan.(41:18 - David) How can we make time for digital, to deeply incorporate this into both strategy and risk? Digital transformation and cybersecurity can easily be crowded out of the agenda by short-term operational issues, and there's only so much time/attention when small organisations have several board meetings per year.About Steven BowmanSteven Bowman is a governance expert and seasoned Board adviser, with a great depth of experience and skill in facilitating Board reviews and the strategic planning process. He has held numerous senior executive, CEO and Board positions in the USA and Australia, and has authored and co-authored over 14 books on governance, strategy, risk and executive leadership. Steven has built a reputation around the world as an adviser who empowers his clients by offering multiple perspectives on any given challenge.Connect with StevenConscious Governance TV: https://www.consciousgovernancetv.com/conscious-governance-tv-home Conscious Governance Moments: https://www.consciousgovernancetv.com/podcasts/conscious-governance-momentsSteve on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenbowmangovernanceThanks to our sponsor BoardProVisit boardpro.com/boardshorts and use the promo code boardshorts (all one word, lowercase) to get a 30-day free trial AND 20% off the price of your first year on any plan.
Structural and personal issues culminate to create a demand problem on boards for diverse candidates. Board diversity – or lack of board diversity – is not a supply problem. It’s a demand problem.More programs targeted at “fixing” diverse cohorts are not going to increase demand to meet the rate of supply. Actions need to be taken by boards to unlock demand to pull diverse candidates into the system.It’s not the aspiring and diverse board candidate who is the problem. You don’t need fixing before being board ready. Yes, educate yourself on the requirements of a board member, but do not see it as the golden ticket into the boardroom. And, for each board-readiness program aimed at a diverse cohort, demand a similar education program for boards themselves. Ask, how are you also increasing demand for this diverse cohort? Like the economy, the board economy is two-sided (supply and demand), so let’s treat it that way. I share four ideas for boards to unlock the demand for diverse board candidates.
I frequently receive comments from Board Talk community members asking for help on how they can find their voice in the boardroom and build powerful boardroom presence. Here is what people are concerned about: “Confidence to speak up with my ideas around the board table. Often if I decide to keep an idea to myself another board member will suggest what I was thinking! Lost opportunity for me.”“I self-doubt if I’m good enough professionally to do this compared to the many amazingly credentialed people out there.”“How do I avoid falling into groupthink”“As a female on an all-male Board - all experienced and good people, how to be me and how to be better.” “Diversity and being heard as the minority view.” “Finding my voice and feeling like I am worthy of my position at the table. Being fairly new to this kind of work, it’s fascinating but I feel afraid to use my voice sometimes.” “Getting over imposter syndrome.”“How to influence outcomes in authentic ways.”If you feel the same, this conversation with Tamsin Simounds will give you some ideas and tools to help you find your voice, confidence, and presence in the boardroom. We cover building confidence to speak up and share your ideas, minimising self-doubt; the role you can play in avoiding groupthink; bringing a diverse voice to the boardroom; ways to find your voice and feel like a valued and valuable board member; getting over imposter syndrome; and how to influence outcomes in authentic ways. I share some of my boardroom beginner blunders (there’s been many) and reassure you that being a beginner is OK and is valuable in itself!Find the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/finding-your-voice-in-the-boardroom-with-tamsin-simounds-ep-63/Connect with Tamsin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamsinkate/ or via her website: https://www.tamsinsimounds.com/
How do I know what I have to offer a board? What should I include in my board resume? What do boards care about from board candidates? How do I sell myself to boards? I share a process that you can follow to answer these, and similar, questions you have as you embark on your board journey. I explain how to effectively research and unearth the common/universal attributes desired from all board candidates, and the specific expertise, experience, skills, knowledge, and/or other attributes desired from board candidates on a particular board or at a particular time. I then teach you how to incorporate this information into your board resume (with examples) and into your personal development plan.At the end, you will have a clear path forward on your board journey.Links Mentioned in EpisodeArticles on Setting a Board Goal: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/?s=board+goal Board Shorts Podcast Episode 49: Setting and calibrating your board goal(s) https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/setting-and-calibrating-your-board-goals-ep-49/Articles on Defining your Unique Value Proposition (UVP) https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/?s=unique+value+propositionArticle: What do boards want? https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/what-do-boards-want/
Professor Miranda Brawn shares her work on The Brawn Review: Boardroom Sustainability, Inclusion and Corporate Governance, and The Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Foundation, along with the outcomes she is working towards through each of these initiatives. Our conversation spans diversity, sustainability, and inclusion, particularly as it applies to the boardroom; the role that boards play in improving their and their organisation’s diversity, sustainability, and inclusion; why there hasn't been faster progress in board diversity despite the many programs and initiative available; and how diverse individuals can put themselves forward for leadership roles, particularly board roles.If you want to participate in The Brawn Review survey, reach out to Professor Brawn via https://www.keble.ox.ac.uk/people/miranda-brawn/ before 16 December 2022.For the full show notes visit:
If you’re on a board, there's a very high likelihood that you have had many discussions about your organisation’s policies and procedures. And rightly so, they are the board’s remote control throughout the organisation, helping to ensure that things are done in the way that the board considers appropriate and, in some instances, necessary. Creating, checking, updating, and approving policies and procedures is something that I have spent many committee and board meetings – and time in between meetings – working on. This is time well invested; however, it’s only a third of the picture. The other two-thirds are (1) implementing the policy or procedure, and (2) checking in that the policy or procedure is being followed and the outcomes of it are what were intended.It’s this final third of your organisation’s operations that my conversation today is focused on: making sure all of those policies and procedures are being following as required so that they the desired outcomes are realised. Whether it’s risk reduction or mitigation, maintaining quality, legislative compliance, or safeguarding financial assets, there needs to be someone checking in that the rules are being followed.That person is usually referred to as an internal auditor. And I have one with me on this episode; Peter Francis is the Managing Director of Aceia, a professional services firm specialising in internal audit and risk management across Australia and New Zealand.Peter has over 25 years of experience in risk and internal audit; doing that job that many are more than willing to hand over to someone who – as you will hear – believes it’s sexy! Peter is an accountant by education, is a Certified Internal Auditor and a Certified Member of the Institute of Internal Auditors, so he knows his stuff.Peter and I discuss what exactly internal audit is, how and why an organisation engages with an external internal auditor, and the impetus for why a Board may want to introduce internal audit activity and the value (and assurances) it will bring. I hope by the end of this conversation you get as excited over internal audit as Peter is! Or at least understand the value in bringing in someone like Peter to support the Board in its risk management role.Aceia: https://aceia.com.au/Peter Francis: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-francis-44222a3/
Sabrina Walker Hernandez, is a nonprofit expert from Texas, USA. Sabrina has a well-established track record - forged over 25 years - of working in and with many profit-for-purpose organisations, as a CEO, as a board member, and as a consultant, coach, and facilitator. Sabrina is the guru of helping nonprofits and small businesses build relationships that increase revenue. And one of those key relationships is with the board. This episode is packed with information, ideas, and novel ways of creating and leveraging a NFP board and its board members. A special focus is placed on fundraising, where Sabrina shares her breakdown of the elements of fundraising and the specific role that board members play in this often shied away from part of board service. I took a ton of notes during this conversation, and I hope you find it just as valuable!Sabrina’s free summit Build a Thriving Nonprofit is on 25-28 October 2022 (Central US time) where you will learn from 21 Nonprofit Experts over 4 days (10 am - 1:15 pm CST // 2am – 5:15am Aust. Eastern Daylight Time) as they address critical issues facing nonprofits today in Fundraising, Board Development, and Marketing in LIVE, ONLINE Virtual Sessions! Visit: https://supportingworldhope.com/VIP Resource Library (including the board member KPI tracking spreadsheet): https://supportingworldhope.com/vip-resource-library/BoardPro Board Management Software: boardpro.com/boardshortsUse the code BOARDSHORTS for 20% off your first year’s plan (useable on any of their plans).
I’m joined by Patton McDowell, a non-profit expert and leadership coach. Our conversation traverses many elements of not-for-profit / nonprofit leadership, focusing on boards and board members. We tackle the issue of how to get the most out of your board members, and how a not-for-profit (NFP) board can go from well-intentioned to high-performing.
Patton also shares his views on joining a NFP board from a traditional (for-profit) background, and how to build a dynamic board in a NFP organisation. We close out with some future-casting on what's in store over the next number of years for NFP boards. There is a wealth of information in this conversation for boards beyond NFP sector, so grab a pen and paper and settle in with my conversation with Patton McDowell.
Check out Patton's work: https://www.pattonmcdowell.com/about-us/ Connect with Patton on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pattonmcdowell/ Book: Your Path to Nonprofit Leadership: https://www.pattonmcdowell.com/book/ Podcast: Your Path to Nonprofit Leadership: https://www.podpage.com/your-path-to-nonprofit-leadership/
I want to get on a board! That’s great. Now it’s time to ask yourself two questions: “What’s driving me to join a board?” and “Do I really know what I’m getting myself into?”
Your answers to those questions will provide you with important information that will help you to decide whether you want to continue on your board journey, and, if you do want to continue, to have some clarity that will help you make decisions towards achieving your board goals.
Find more information to help you get on to a board, visit https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/category/joining-a-board/
Whether we’re conscious of it or not, people are judging and perceiving us all the time. If we’re not intentional about the image we’re portraying, we will likely send the wrong messages about ourselves. This conversation with Rebecca Allen delves into this and connects intention with behaviours to ensure your personal brand (the stories that you and others tell about you) is sending the messages you want it to and supports you to achieve your professional and board goals.
Rebecca Allen is a Career Success Coach for women looking to step it up in their careers. For the last 13 years Rebecca has been helping women get promoted, get paid appropriately, and raise their visibility and credibility to get the recognition they deserve. Connect with Rebecca here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccaallencareercoach/ Podcast: http://www.herambitiouscareerpodcast.com Get your free resource: The 7 Habits of Female Execs Who Get Promoted by visiting http://www.rebeccasfreegift.com Get a spot straight into Rebecca's diary, schedule a free 15-minute Career Strategy Call: https://www.register.illuminategrowth.com.au/scheduleyourcall
A doyenne of Adelaide boardrooms, Carolyn Mitchell generously shares insights from her 17-year board career in the latest Boardroom Insider of the Month episode of the Board Shorts Podcast. This rich conversation traverses Carolyn’s board beginnings, her observations of what makes a great board member, how to avoid some of the traps of board service, and how to best deliver value via the boardroom.
View the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/boardroom-insider-of-the-month-with-carolyn-mitchell-ep-55/
Wondering what a board recruiter wants you to know about board recruitment? I’m sharing some insights from my recent conversation with a board recruiter to help you on your board journey.
Essential reminders on: * Why you need to treat everyone as a potential referee. * How and why to nurture your network. * Why you need to beware of some board recruiters. * Your resume structure and content.
Full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/insights-from-a-board-recruiter-ep-54
Over many years of helping many phenomenal aspiring board members develop a compelling board resume, I have noticed that there are some common mistakes people make when preparing a board resume.
These mistakes are nearly universal and are easily fixed with a change in perspective or approach, and in sweating the ‘small stuff’ that can make a big impact on whether your resume stays off the ‘no’ pile.
With a little bit of work, you can take your resume from average to standout.
Here are the top five mistakes that I see in board resumes, and how you can avoid making them with some simple adjustments and tweaks.
Imposter syndrome. Confusion. Overwhelm. And many a faux pas.
All of these things I have experienced on new boards. Unfortunately, more than once over my 13-year board career.
Every board is different and has its own set of spoken and unspoken rules. What works on one board, may not work on another. I've learnt this the "more challenging" way.
Starting on a new board is going to be a time when you confront some parts of you that you may not have known existed. The shadow sides of us that work to trip us up in high-stakes situations (like in the boardroom). As challenging as these are, they are a beautiful learning and growth opportunity.
I’m sharing three common experiences that I and other new board members have had, and what I do and recommend myself and others do to work through them (because they're going to happen and there's no avoiding them). I’m even going to share an embarrassing story that still bugs me. By talking about it, I hope to show that we are all humans (yes, even board members) and that we make mistakes. And that is OK!
It's helps to give ourselves and others compassion, grace, and understanding. Remember, we all start green on a new board.
Full Show Notes:
Starting on a new board (whether it's your very first, or your fifth) is equal parts exhilarating and daunting.
You want to know what you should be doing, but you don’t know enough about this board and this organisation to know what it is that you need to be doing!
It’s not great to feel out of control like this (particularly for type-A personalities like me!).
I’ve sat with this feeling many times (eight times over the past 13 years to be precise). To help me navigate those first moments on a new board, I’ve developed a process to fall back on to (1) help me feel that I am doing something proactive that will get me to feeling that I am closer to returning value to the board and organisation in a meaningful way, and (2) helps keep the feelings of overwhelm and panic at bay.
And I hope it helps you too.
Full Show Notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/new-board-heres-a-strategy-for-your-first-100-days-ep-51/
As Chair of Regional Development Australia Murraylands and Riverland, and CFO of Bowhill Engineering, Jodie Hawkes relishes in the opportunities to lead people. Whether it’s in the boardroom, in the factory, or across a regional community, Jodie is focused with determination to ensure that goals and objectives are met while building high-performance individuals, world-class organisations, and resilient communities, with a deep sense of wellbeing and connection with the world around them.
Jodie shares what motivates her to be involved at the board level, the value she gains from that experience, how she overcame her biggest boardroom challenge, and distils advice for aspiring and new board members from her many years in the boardroom. I also ask Jodie about how she navigates the unique challenges of rural and regional based boards. It’s a rich conversation that I hope you enjoy.
How do I get on a board? Where do I start?
If you’re starting out your board journey, these questions are probably going through your mind. I have a couple of answers to those questions along with some important guidance, centred around the analogy of going on a journey. This podcast episode will help you to embark on your board career in a way that enables a successful voyage into the boardroom.
View the full show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/setting-and-calibrating-your-board-goals-ep-49/ Break into the Boardroom course: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/break-boardroom-selfpaced/
ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) is a growing area of focus for boards and organisations. Driven by investors seeking win-win-win outcomes for themselves, the organisation, and its broader community and environment, ESG is an area of business activity with increasing expectations and requirements for disclosure. Inspired from my recent assignment into Australia’s major banks’ ESG activities and disclosures, I’ve identified three lessons that all boards can learn and adopt. I share these – along with some reflections from my research – in this episode.
To be continually successful into the future, we need to constantly work on maintaining relevance (what we can refer to as ‘futureproofing’ ourselves). It’s difficult to know precisely what will be needed in the future; however, there are some rules (developed by tech journalist Kevin Roose) that give us a human-centred framework about how we can futureproof ourselves (and our organisations). I explore his first rule: be surprising, social, and scarce in the context of a board career in this episode.
Full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/futureproof-your-board-career-ep-47
If you're ready to find that next board role, firstly, I encourage you to work through the steps I’ve laid out in episodes 44 and 45. This process that I developed (and have encapsulated in the self-paced course Break into the Boardroom) works for aspiring board members of any level: first board role or fifth board role, paid or unpaid. There are few additional recommendations that I have for you if you’re ready to take your board career to the next level that are prefect to do at this time of year (or any time really!).
For the full show notes (including links to resources to help evolve your board career), visit https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/propel-your-board-career-forward-episodes-44-45-and-46/
If you are looking to put some serious efforts into your 2022 board goals, consider enrolling into Break into the Boardroom: it’s a fully online self-paced course taking you through the steps to land a board role. Enrolment includes a personal one-to-one coaching call with me where we can leverage off the work you have done in the course to support you to achieve your board goal(s). You can find that course at https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/break-boardroom-selfpaced/
Creating and executing an intentional networking strategy that is natural and isn't wholly reliant on you having to meet people face-to-face, may be what it takes to reboot your board search strategy. I also want you to not have to rely solely on responding to board advertisements as your primary tactic to securing a board seat. It’s certainly one way to get into the boardroom but is something to be used in combination with a networking strategy.
For the full show notes (including links to resources to help you build a powerful networking strategy), visit https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/propel-your-board-career-forward-episodes-44-45-and-46/
If you are looking to put some serious efforts into your 2022 board goals, consider enrolling into Break into the Boardroom: it’s a fully online self-paced course taking you through the steps to land a board role. Enrolment includes a personal one-to-one coaching call with me where we can leverage off the work you have done in the course to support you to achieve your board goal(s). You can find that course at https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/break-boardroom-selfpaced/
So you want to get on a board, but you’re not sure how to start your board journey. ‘How do I get on a board’ is a common question that I receive. To help you start out, I have three things for you to do to make your journey into the boardroom smart, smooth, and direct.
For the full show notes (including links to resources to help you on your board journey), visit https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/propel-your-board-career-forward-episodes-44-45-and-46/
If you are looking to put some serious efforts into your 2022 board goals, consider enrolling into Break into the Boardroom: it’s a fully online self-paced course taking you through the steps to land a board role. Enrolment includes a personal one-to-one coaching call with me where we can leverage off the work you have done in the course to support you to achieve your board goal(s). You can find that course at https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/break-boardroom-selfpaced/
Do you ever feel bogged down in the nitty-gritty of every tiny detail at board meetings? Does the conversation feel like its going around and around in circles? Do you ever hear your CEO use the words “micro-managing” and “over controlling” when talking about your board? Well, it could be because your board is too concerned with the operational issues of the organisation when the focus should really be on the more important strategic matters.
Here are seven questions to help you focus discussions at the right level at your board meetings.
Full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/keeping-your-board-strategic-ep-43/
Amanda Cole is a highly accomplished leader who has forged a successful advisory board career over the past 20 years. Since starting as a volunteer board member of her professional industry association, where she quickly moved into the national Chair role, Amanda has grown her advisory board portfolio. She is currently the Chair of Sunfresh Linen and two other private advisory boards for medium-size national family businesses.
Amanda is sharing a ton of valuable information and ideas that you can take into your board career, whether you’re an existing board member, aspiring board member, or looking to expand or grow your board portfolio.
Full show notes visit: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/boardroom-insider-of-the-month-with-amanda-cole-ep-42
When you get talking to board members you will very quickly discover that they all share a set of common frustrations. These usually centre around unequal workload distribution, under or no meeting preparation (i.e. haven’t read the board papers), receiving too much or too little information, receiving papers too close to the meeting time, and taking too long or not long enough on the important decisions of the board.
These are such common frustrations across boards and board members of all industries, for-profit and NFP organisations, and all sizes and shapes of boards.
And I’m not surprised. From my own experience it feels like we assume that because you’re capable of sitting on a board that somehow you instantly and inherently know how to do that: how to be part of a team, how to prepare for meetings, how to BE a board member on this board, without anyone telling you or showing you how. And no one talks about it. You’re just expected to integrate seamlessly. It’s no wonder all of these frustrations arise: no one has taken the time to discuss and agree on a set of guiding principles around HOW the board will work and WHAT expectations the board and board members have and agree to work to. We’re all just thrown together and expected to work it all out and have efficient and effective board meetings at the end of the day.
So, to help you help your board, I’m sharing some ideas around what to do before, during, after, and in between board meetings to help you and your board be efficient and effective. I encourage you to take these ideas, and some of your own, to your board and develop as a team your rules of engagement to ensure you’re all on the same page and all operating from the same rule book.
Full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/maximising-board-meetings-ep-41/
Carolyn Grant is an advisor, author and founder of 6peas marketing and engagement; an agency creating tools, frameworks and training founded in neuroscience to provide insights to leaders to improve critical decision-making, team performance, customer advocacy and innovation. Carolyn is the creator and publisher of the People + Science Boardroom Psychological Safety Benchmark 2020-2021 (Australia).
Her research around psychological safety in the boardroom is the topic of our conversation. An HBR article reminds us that “The highest-performing teams have one thing in common: psychological safety — the belief that you won’t be punished when you make a mistake.” However, Carolyn’s research has shown that 45% of board members feel unsafe in the boardroom, the majority of the time. So what’s driving this? How do you have the type of robust / fierce conversations necessary in the boardroom whilst maintaining psychological safety? How do you effectively balance these two factors without falling into the trap of group think and fake harmony just for the sake of not upsetting others?
Carolyn shares her perspectives from working with leaders and board members and shares what we can individually do as board members to create a psychologically safe environment AND maintain sufficient and effective discussion and debate.
Visit Carolyn's website: https://www.6peas.com.au/ View the full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/psychological-safety-in-the-boardroom-with-carolyn-grant-ep-40
The chances are high that you will sit on many different boards throughout your board career. Your boards will likely be in different industries, serve different customers, have different and unique challenges and opportunities, and will have its own culture and structure and context. To try and build specific skills for each and every permutation would be a long and tedious task. This is where developing the necessary core skills will enable you to have a catalyst for learning and building new, specific, skills faster. These core skills are termed 'meta skills'.
I share my list of board member meta skills and how you can master them.
My Five Meta Skills for Board Members: 1. Getting comfortable with Discomfort 2. Curiosity and Courage 3. Self-Awareness 4. Not knowing it all 5. Commitment
Join the Board Talk community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/boardtalk
Visit: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/mastering-key-boardroom-skills-ep-39/
Welcome back to another edition of boardroom insider of the month. Today I am joined by Rod Buchecker. Rod is a marketing & brand strategist, CEO coach, and board member.
Amongst many other roles he holds, Rod currently serves on: • The Advisory Board of Think 180 Pty Ltd • The Board of Burnside War Memorial Hospital and is Chair of the Burnside Hospital Foundation, and • The Board of Adelaide Zoo and Monarto Safari Park, where he is also Chair of Risk and Governance.
Rod’s board career extends back to 1994; so he has a lot of wisdom to share and he does so in this episode.
Rod shares • His pathway to the boardroom • What he thinks are the essential skill(s) of great board members • How he sees his professional expertise benefiting organisations via board service. • The value he gets personally from serving on boards; and • How he overcame his biggest board career challenge.
Connect with Rod at https://rodbuchecker.com/ Full show notes at https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/boardroom-insider-of-the-month-with-rod-buchecker-ep-38/
My guest today is Brad Waldron. Brad is known for his room-filling energy, infectious humour and battle-proven insights with immediate real-world applications. He has a proven record of helping others to succeed, through harnessing a rare combination of insight, humour and practical strategies to increase performance whilst enabling people to gain more fulfillment from their professional roles. He’s a speaker, CEO, executive chairman, strategist, coach, champion, author and winner across sport and business.
I came across Brad when I searched LinkedIn using the phrase ‘Corporate Athlete’; as you now know, Brad really does embody that mental image of a corporate athlete. I invited Brad onto the podcast because I know that many of you are playing multiple roles: full-time professional, parent, partner, family member, friend, and board member. Amongst other things. I want to support you to be successful across all of these roles, and that you maintain the high energy, high output, that you are likely known for, without burning out so that you have a long-term sustainable board career.
I am sure that this conversation will inspire and motivate you to be intentional about the roles you choose to play, and that you play them from a 10.
Full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/sustainable-board-career-brad-waldron/
Six years ago I had a stroke. It taught me some valuable lessons.
This episode is in recognition of National Stroke Week in Australia (2-8 August 2021). You can donate to the Australian Stroke Foundation at https://strokefoundation.org.au/
I am also donating 1% of all August course revenue. Visit https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/academy/
As part of diversity month, I have invited Sunita Miranda onto the podcast to have her share her experiences in the boardroom as a young female of Indian ethnicity with an expertise in marketing and communications.
Sunita has served on boards for nearly 13 years, starting, like many of us, in the NFP sector while working full time and with a young family.
Sunita is a testament to sharing your career goals with your partner so that you’re all working together, why it’s critical as a board member (current or aspiring) to always be educating yourself, and the simple and practical way a board can approach improving its diversity.
Find all of the show notes here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/boardroom-insider-of-the-month-with-sunita-miranda-ep-35/
What should one expect from a new director induction / on-boarding program? AND If there is no formal new director on-boarding program in place, for example, in the case of smaller NFP's or private companies, what should one ask from the Chair and CEO to get yourself up to speed as quickly as possible ahead of your first board meeting?
My answer to these questions addresses the two main aspects of board life: the business and the board. I also include the questions that I would be asking the CEO and Chair to get me up to speed and contributing to the board and business ASAP.
For full show notes (including links) visit: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/welcome-to-the-boardroom-ep-34
When I first read 'The Five Dysfunctions of a Team' by Patrick Lencioni I was struck at how the five dysfunctions of the management team presented in the book are reflected in teams of all kinds, from the sporting field to the boardroom. It’s actually one of the best “business books for the boardroom” that I’ve read.
When I ran into Leadership and Team Development Specialist, Paul Lloyd, recently at an event and he mentioned he was newly accredited in the Patrick Lencioni CAPAPro network, I jumped on the opportunity to invite him onto the podcast to have a conversation about the five dysfunctions of a team as it applies to the boardroom. Thankfully he accepted and, as suspected, we had a great discussion; covering how dysfunction shows up in the boardroom, how a board begins to overcome their dysfunctions, and what teams who think they’re not quite in the dysfunction zone can do to get better. We also digress into other areas, because when you start to unpack group dysfunction you start to realise that it comes a lot from our personal issues that we bring to the boardroom, our assumptions, and unmet expectations.
It doesn’t take long into a board career to realise that boards are more about people than they are about pure governance; so I’m certain that any board member (or aspiring board member) will find this conversation valuable.
I’m here to tell you not to quit your day job!
Naturally, I’m often asked what people can do to help themselves land their first board role.
After heavily advocating that they invest in building, nurturing, and leveraging their network, I recommend that they be REALLY good at their day job; what Cal Newport refers to as being so good they can’t ignore you. After all, your expertise is usually the primary reason why you’ll be attractive to boards, particularly at the beginning of your board career.
My transition from very small organisation boards, onto the boards of organisations that had day-to-day staff was predicated on my expertise (at that time I was doing marketing and PR). It was a transferable skill set that applied in many organisations and industries.
Additionally, your skill set provides you with what I like to call ‘low hanging fruit’ when considering which board(s) you may want to initially consider joining at the beginning of your board career; places where your current expertise is most valued. It may be a board or organisation in your industry, or it may be a totally different industry / organisation that has the need for your transferable expertise.
I cover WHY your professional career is vital for your board career, and the three things that I recommend for you to do if you’re someone who is in a professional career and is an aspiring board member.
The longer I listen to the news, the more I hear about organisations lurching from one culture crisis to the next. The boardroom is the place where bad culture starts, but it’s also where bad culture can – and probably should – die. With the average person spending 90,000 hours of their life at work, workplace culture has an enormous influence and impact on our wellbeing.
In this episode, I’m talking with Samantha McGolrick, a Health and Safety professional. This is actually a conversation NOT about health and safety compliance, but one about helping you as a board member to improve organisational performance and find deeper meaning and purpose in their board role by using their influence to make a positive impact.
The board space can be incredibly overwhelming; there are so many names that apply to boards of directors – some come from legislation and some from tradition. It’s no surprise that one of our most-read articles is one describing the various types of ‘boards’ that you may encounter as you begin and progress your board career.
This podcast discusses the most common types of boards and what makes them different – and a little bit the same – as each other.
Please keep in mind that this list is not exhaustive, and the information is general in nature. As always, seek professional legal advice if you have any questions about your position, board, and/or organisation.
Imagine being in a new city, in a new country, where you don’t know anyone and having to build your professional and personal network from a completely zero base. This is what Jerry Kleeman agreed to do over 20 years ago when he moved from the US to Adelaide, Australia to take on a senior role in a global company. He is now considered by many people to be the person who knows everyone. And his ongoing networking activities continue to return value for him, his clients, and others in his network.
Networking often instills dread in many of us; so I wanted to bring Jerry onto the show, sharing his somewhat extreme network building story to encourage you to embrace network building activities (not just meeting new people at events). Unlike Jerry, you already likely know many people – this is your existing network and is a great place to start becoming intentional with when it comes to progressing your board goals. From there, you can start to work outwards, building an intentional, valuable network who will go to bat for you when it comes to board opportunities.
Find the show notes and Networking for Board Success workbook here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/the-art-of-networking-with-jerry-kleeman-ep-29/
How do you succeed as a not-for-profit board member? How can you effectively leverage not-for-profit board roles?
I’m answering these questions from a listener, covering the span of your board journey: considerations before you join a board, what to do once you’re on a board, and how to transition to your next board.
Check out the show notes for this episode here: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/succeeding-and-leveraging-a-nfp-board-role
When you meet someone new, how do you answer the question ‘what do you do?’ It’s a simple question that strikes fear into most people.
There is actually a way to answer this question that enables you to start a potentially valuable conversation.
Your answer should be framed in what I call your ‘Unique Value Proposition’. It’s something that I work on with every aspiring board member.
Knowing your Unique Value Proposition is a key that unlocks opportunities for you in the boardroom AND in other contexts – such as your professional life.
My conversation with Joanna – a Potentialist, Adventurer & Aspiring Fairy Godmother* - will show you why and how to tell stories about yourself that demonstrate just how awesome you are.
This is something that – after listening to this conversation – you may want to see in action. That’s why I have shared a link in the show notes to a YouTube video of Joanna doing this live with an audience participant: https://youtu.be/gllpAOaYCjM It’s so powerful.
There is no shortage of corporate misconduct in the most senior ranks of some of the largest organisations in Australia. From allegations of sexual harassment to reports of bullying at the highest levels of organisations, boards are having to govern and lead through significant human relations crises that are having major external impacts.
Board expert Julie Garland McLellan returns to the podcast to share her expertise and advice on how boards can govern and lead well through a human relations crisis.
It’s a robust conversation that traverses the most significant and current corporate misconduct cases happening in Australia right now.
At the beginning of this year - 2020 - I went back to school to study a Master of Business Law.
Of course, I was expecting to learn a lot about law, but university - particularly my first semester back at university in about 8 years - actually ended up being a mirror. It highlighted parts of my personality, temperament, and working style. I was TOTALLY NOT expecting that. But rather than fight it, I decided to use it and grow from it.
I’m not sure if you’ve felt it, but I've been feeling and noticing this mood or appetite, or even both, for a more human-side to businesses and boards. I think the global pandemic has had an interesting effect on our psyche; in a strange way, being physically distanced from each other has made us recognise and appreciate the human connections that we do have when we come together in person. Particularly as boards have shifted to virtual board meetings, the value of what I call the human element in the boardroom and amongst the board itself, which was previously taken for granted, is being recognised as something that is of value to a board, its members, and the organisation as a whole.
Working well as a group of humans takes investment and intention. My conversation with Bobby Herrera takes us on a journey from how our personal struggles influence our leadership and support the organisation, how trust builds value and one must proceed the other, and how bringing vulnerability into the boardroom can enhance your and the board’s performance.
As you listen, I encourage you to reflect on your style of leadership, both inside and outside the boardroom, and how you can leverage the gift of struggle.
Find out about Bobby: https://bobby-herrera.com Connect with Bobby on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobby-herrera-5781821/ Purchase The Gift of Struggle: https://bobby-herrera.com/books/ Watch Bobby's 'Bus Story': https://youtu.be/CYLHHg9A9Cs
The conversation about board diversity generally starts and stops at gender balance. That’s been a wonderful place to start; however, we both recognise that diversity is much more diverse than just gender.
This conversation that I had with Amy Bottoms, a Principal of Catalyst Advisors in Seattle, Washington, covered the pros and cons of legislating for gender balance on boards, whether people are still interested in board diversity beyond gender balance, simple ways that a board can start creating a diverse cohort, how do the best boards build, maintain, and leverage diversity around their table; and how diverse candidates can position themselves to get on a board.
Amy brings 25 years of experience building board of directors and executive leadership teams for innovative life sciences companies. Prior to joining Catalyst Advisors, she was an Engagement Manager at a leading global executive search firm, where she specialised in recruiting board directors, general management executives and senior commercial and technical leaders across the biopharma, healthcare IT, medical technology and healthcare services sectors. Amy began her career at Microsoft as a Corporate Researcher before entering the executive search industry in 1996 as a Research Associate.
We are ALL in the situation where we are learning to lead through a global pandemic and deep and sudden economic crisis. There is no playbook for us as board members to follow; however, there are likely better ways for us to lead through this current situation and for us, as board members, to continue to add value to our boards. To understand what the best boards and best board members are doing now, I reached out to Julie Garland-McLellan.
Julie and I talk about: :: What the best boards are doing right now; what’s on their agenda; and how they’re spending their time. :: What boards can do to support the organisation in the short to medium term future. :: What's on their strategy agenda, and how boards can start looking forward to recovery/what’s next and taking advantage of opportunities that are available. :: Clarifying the short-term changes to insolvent trading liabilities for directors. :: And other interesting observations that Julie has made as she supports boards through the COVID crisis.
Resources Julie mentions during our conversation: :: Anti-Fragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb: https://www.bookdepository.com/Antifragile-Nassim-Nicholas-Taleb/9780141038223?ref=grid-view&qid=1587363253180&sr=1-15 :: The Cost of Running Boards [yes, even volunteer boards]: https://www.mclellan.com.au/res/files/report-on-cost-of-running-boards.pdf
Find the full show notes: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/how-the-best-boards-are-leading-through-covid-19-with-julie-garland-mclellan-ep-22/
The key to getting better answers to help solve problems or seize opportunities is to ask better questions. Genuine curiosity is a cornerstone attribute of effective board members and effective boards.
But how do we develop our questioning muscle? What makes a great question? What stops us from asking questions? And where do you start when faced with big issues in the boardroom?
I sat down with question-asking expert Greg Bustin earlier this year at the international Vistage Chair conference in San Diego to pick his brain about how us as board members can develop and ask better questions in the boardroom.
Using Greg’s book ‘That’s a Great Question’ as a conversation starting point, Greg and I talked about: * What makes a great question. * What words to avoid when asking questions. * What is stopping us from asking questions. * The value in slowing down. * Why how you ask a question is just as important as what you ask. * Five questions every organisation should be asking. * Where to start with big decisions in the boardroom. * And a brief history of the question mark.
Check out the show notes to download the question grid and connect with Greg: https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/category/board-shorts-podcast/
As board members, we open ourselves up to risk - financial and otherwise. But how do you begin to get your head around exactly what this risk is and how deep it can reach into your and your family’s lives? I look to answer that question, sent in by a listener, who wanted to understand the financial risk she (and by default her family) might be taking on if she accepts a board position. She also wanted to know what the risks are of being sued, and if it’s worth taking out insurance to cover the risks of being on a board?
Please note: all information in this - and other episodes of the Board Shorts Podcast - is general in nature. You should seek advice from appropriately qualified specialists to address your specific circumstance.
Kelvin Spiller, author of One Step Ahead: what aspiring leaders and CEOs need to know before, during, and after their first 100 days, shares the leadership model he has developed from his experience across 8 CEO roles and more than 35 board and committee roles, and how you can maximise and leverage your first 100 days in a leadership role.
Kelvin's book, One Step Ahead, can be purchased here: https://www.kelvinspiller.com.au/product-page
My 10+ years in the boardroom has given me a valuable perspective on board succession planning and board recruitment.
I’ve observed that boards in all industries and types of organisations struggle with this. As they say, they can’t ‘find good people’.
I actually refuse to believe this.
There are plenty of great people looking to join boards, even yours!
It turns out that the quality of your board candidates is directly related to the quality of your recruitment activities. Many boards don’t have any board recruitment activities. And they are surprised that they can't find good people...
Enough on that for the moment!
In this episode of the Board Shorts Podcast I talk further about this topic. I share what I’ve learned over my board career so far and present a model for succession planning that I’ve been developing over the past few years. It is designed to help you and your board understand - and improve - your board succession planning and board recruitment practices.
__________ Looking for the sample Director Selection and Induction Process mentioned in the show? Visit https://getonboardaustralia.com.au/board-shorts-podcast-a-better-way-to-board-succession-planning-ep-18/ for the link to download.
In this episode of the Board Shorts podcast I am joined by David Campbell. David is an expert in risk and crisis management. David has an interesting way of looking at business risk; focusing on the opportunities that business risks present. Dare I say it, David makes talking about risk management fun!
In this episode, David covers: - What he sees is the board’s role in risk and crisis management; - How to change your perception of risk management as an advantage; - Where he sees boards get lost and overwhelmed with risk and crisis management; - And, some simple and practical ways that boards can start doing risk management more effectively.
David Campbell is the Managing Director of Resilience Planning, a leading provider of risk, emergency, crisis and continuity planning, training, exercising and assurance services.
David has over 20 years of experience in this field, and lectures at the University of South Australia.
His career in emergency services has helped David to develop his unique perspective on risk, business continuity, and leveraging it for strategic advantage.
Contact David Website: http://www.resilienceplanning.com.au Email: david@resilienceplanning.com.au LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/davidcampbel
In this episode we cover the main areas of questioning you will likely experience during your board interview and how best you can prepare for these. We also touch on a few other areas that are recommended you review to prepare any questions to ask the interviewer(s) so that you are really sure about joining the board (or not).
This episode of the Board Shorts Podcast is with special guest Merlin McCloy from M2M Risk and Insurance.
Merlin and I talked about risk and protection for board members. Now, I know that whenever someone says risk and protection and insurance that your eyes may glaze over! But these are critical areas of importance for all board members on any type of board - for for profit and not for profit.
This was an incredibly interesting conversation where I also learned a few things.
Before you get into this episode, I must remind you that the information in this podcast is general in nature and that you need to consider your own circumstances and seek expert advice in regards to your - or your board’s - risk and insurance requirements.
Today’s episode is an answer to a question asked by Get on Board Australia community member, Christina. Christina asks “does being on the board of a not for profit differ significantly from a company?”
The short answer to this question is yes and no. But that doesn’t exactly tell you much! And the long answer brings in many complexities, circumstantial intricacies, and organisation and board specifics.
The answer falls somewhere in the middle and gives you food for thought when considering whether you want to join a not-for-profit board or a corporate board. We discuss the three main areas that people primarily mean and consider when asking the question on how NFP and corporate boards differ.
In this episode, I talk with Liz Savage, a switched on board director who has built - and continues to build - a board portfolio that draws on her successful professional career and builds her future board potential.
Liz shares why it’s so vital for aspiring board members to develop strong networks before you even start looking for a board role, why the board diversity conversation needs to expand, the importance of knowing why you want to join a board, and why board service brings her so much joy.
Looking back on her 25+ years of governance experience, Andrea shares her thoughts on community expectations of boards and how that impacts boards, directors, and organisations in the future, how to balance competing interests on a board, getting from an executive career to a board career, the essential skills board members need to develop, and why being a good manager/executive doesn't make you a good board member.
In this episode, we talk with Michelle Pole, company secretary and senior legal counsel at Oz Minerals and a board member of Netball SA. Michelle talks about how a pilates class turned in to a board role, the value of having personal champions, why board members need to have courage, and 3 pieces of advice for you if you’re a new or aspiring board member.
There are a lot of places and people urging and helping you to get on to a board. Some, charging a significant amount of money for it. What I see less emphasis on is the area that needs to first be addressed before anyone embarks on starting or building a board career. And that’s around your awareness of what it truly means to be a company director. All of the duties, responsibilities, accountability, and risk that you undertake by the nature of becoming a director.
This episode of the Board Shorts Podcast steps you through the what, why, and how of corporate governance.
Today’s episode is all about Etiquette in the boardroom: why manners always matter. I’m joined by etiquette expert Alana Lenart.
Whether you’re starting out on your board career and wondering how to behave in the boardroom, or if you’re feeling like the board you’re on is behaving badly, and could do with a boost in its team work, today’s episode has some gems for you.
Alana and I talk about what etiquette is (and isn’t), what etiquette looks like in the boardroom, the behaviours that you and your board can introduce to create a better culture in the boardroom and across the organisation, being a values-led board, and recruiting for the culture you WANT, not the culture you have.
Wellbeing matters to board members personally and within and throughout the organisations they serve. This episode covers everything from personal wellbeing through to employee wellbeing, looking at ways we can incorporate wellbeing into our own lives and how, as board members, we can embed wellbeing throughout the organisation, making it positively contribute to business outcomes.
In this first edition of Diary of a Board Member, MD of Get on Board Australia Lisa Cook, talks all about frustrations as a board member and what she does to overcome them.
I hope this resonates with you and if you have any questions or topics you’d like to hear in future editions, please visit GetOnBoardAustralia.com.au/podcast
I apologise for the poor sound quality in parts of this podcast; I recorded it while sitting in my car overlooking Henley Beach in Adelaide.
Given that conversations around the board table can get a little heated and some issues can become quite contentious, we have bought Organisational Psychologist Shelley Rogers onto the podcast to talk about the ways in which you can use different strategies and approaches when the conversation gets a little prickly in the boardroom to stop it becoming nasty.
A conversation with special guest Noel Verma from PwC talking about innovation in the boardroom. Covering why innovation needs to be a boardroom conversation, how smaller organisations can adopt an innovation agenda, where to start an innovation programme, how the board can support innovation, what holds organisations back from innovating, and a takeaway that you can take and embed in your organisation today.
Visit www.getonboardaustralia.com.au/board-shorts-podcast-episode-3-innovation-in-the-boardroom for resource links.
Suggestions and ideas on how boards can increase their diversity and how aspiring board members can take advantage of the opening up of the boardroom.
One of the most common questions we are asked is “how do I get on a board”. And it makes sense. Boards seem like really cool places to be and the title of director or board member is a neat thing to have. There’s lots of information out there about what to do once you’re on a board; but not so much about how to get on one in the first place. We share six steps to get you started on your board journey.