Launch the New Year with Your own Board of Directors

Start off this year with a strategy to invite your own board of directors to participate in achieving your business goals. When you look at any company with a board, there’s usually a lawyer, a real estate agent, an accountant, and a human resources leader. Just as a company benefits from experts, so will you. Surround yourself with people who have skill sets, personalities, and experiences that are different than your own. Consider these benefits for everyone when you have a board of directors engaged and invested in the success of your business, as well as how to start building a board of your own:

WIIFM (“What’s in it for me” to have a board of directors?)

• Receive advice from individuals who have specialized knowledge and/or business experience that is different from your background.
• Acquire feedback on how they see you leading yourself and others.
• Accelerate introductions to other key stakeholders in your development.
• Gain encouragement, support, and feedforward from other professionals who want to see you succeed.

WIIFT (What’s in it for them?)

• Expand their relationships with others invested in the organization.
• Expedite their knowledge of other areas within the organization and/or the community.
• Improve their strategic and political acumen.
• Fast track another person in achieving their goals.

How do I approach a potential board of directors member?

• Let the person know that you respect and admire them.
• Explain what you would like the person to do to serve as your advisor on your personal board of directors.
• Offer to reciprocate by helping the potential board member with their business initiatives.

What do I need to know about selecting and maximizing my board of directors?

• Identify people you admire inside and outside your organization. These advisors are people with important connections and those who want to see you succeed.
• Use your board to provide guidance about professional image and presence, to expose you to valuable connections, or to provide promotion opportunities and references.
• Just as a code of behavior applies to networking groups, it is also critical to thoughtfully manage the advisor-protégé relationship. Most advisors are more than happy to provide guidance to a protégé that is eager to learn and uses the advisor’s time well.
• Expressing gratitude to advisors is a requirement of this special relationship. You can also reciprocate your board’s generosity by offering to support your advisors in their future endeavors.

When you consider these tips you can make relationships with your board of directors benefit everyone in your organization. What have you done to effectively engage your board of directors and help improve performance?

Barbara A.F. Greene is the founder and CEO of Career Partners International – San Antonio, locally branded as Greene and Associates, Inc., an organizational resilience company offering corporate coaching and consulting services from the executive suites to the shop floor. She has a Master’s Degree in Counseling and designation as a Master Certified Coach by the International Coach Federation. A published author, Barbara serves on charitable and professional boards and has received numerous awards for leadership, mentoring, and community service.

Career Partners International provides top quality talent management services to organizations of all sizes. Their offices around the world help assess, engage, develop, and transition talent in any industry. To find out more about Career Partners International and how you can maximize your organizational performance, reach out to an office near you or contact us today!