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To help HR Executives with building their non-executive portfolio, Nurole hosted a live webinar hosted by Nurole Founder Susie Cummings and Commercial Client Success Lead, Carla Devereux. To share some stories of building a NED portfolio, the session was also covered by Barry Hoffman - Experienced Board Member, Advisor and Mentor and Meriel Lenfestey - Chair & NED with 20 years of non-exec experience.

This discussion touched on:

• the expectation of board members with HR backgrounds
• how the role differs by type of board
• how to stand out at the application stage
• how to prepare before interviews
• how to convince hiring boards of the transferability of career skills and many more.

You can find a recording of the webinar below, along with a summary of insights.

1. What do boards want from HR executives? FTSE boards want a broad representation of functions. Having an HR Executive on the board doesn't necessarily mean someone to consult on people strategy and remuneration. What it does give organisations is someone who can approach more general business problems with a perspective of deep experience in their field. Ultimately, boards want an individual who has researched their industry and organisation, may already understand some of the challenges and has the listening and questioning skills to effectively support and challenge the executives.
   
2. Which type of board should I join for my first non-executive role? It's not necessarily a type of board you should look for, but a role you believe will give you the most satisfaction. This could be the sector, mission or team. If you're interested in business in general, a role that asks a lot from your other skill sets rather than HR will yield more satisfaction.
   
3. Has the need for HR skills on boards increased in the last 5 years? Absolutely not. The need for people with HR perspectives has always been there and now organisations are waking up to this. There happens to be a greater spotlight on governance, culture, employee voice, and employee activism in 2023, even though the underlying issues haven't changed.
   
4. What are the first 90 days like in an FTSE role? It can be quite intense because there's a lot of onboarding, meeting people, listening and reading papers. This difference is you're on your own to do this without the executive infrastructure for support. But importantly, the first 90 days are fantastic fun. Meeting people, feeling a sense of belonging and community, and being part of a business that's doing something interesting is really brilliant.
   
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