What Boards Really Look For: Landing a First Board Seat
For senior executives, landing a first board seat often requires more than an impressive career record. It requires understanding how boards think, how director needs are defined, and how candidates are evaluated against the company’s future strategy. At the AESC Global Summit on Leadership in New York City, executive search and leadership advisory experts offered a practical look inside the board appointment process. Drawing on their experience advising boards and assessing senior leaders, the panel explored what boards are really looking for, how executives can position themselves for board service, and why the path to a board seat begins with one central question: how will you add value in the boardroom? Their insights are equally relevant for the search and advisory professionals who guide candidates through this process, as well as for those considering a first board seat themselves. Boards Are Hiring for the Future Greg Gerson and Lauren Smith speak at the How to Land Your First Board Seat panel Board seats open for a range of reasons. Some directors retire. Some boards expand. In other cases, boards identify a gap in the expertise they need to guide the organization forward. From the perspective of executive search [...]
