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Nurole hosted a webinar which focused on how to secure a commercial board position through Nurole. The webinar featured Oliver Cummings and Carla Devereux, respectively Nurole CEO and Commercial Client Success Lead. The discussion touched on points like how to stand out at the application stage, how to prepare before interviews, how to convince hiring boards on the transferability of career skills, and many more.

You can find a recording of the webinar below, along with a summary of insights from the discussion below. Additionally, we received some great questions from the audience but did not have time to answer them all live. Oliver and Carla have prepared more detailed responses which we hope you find useful.

• Clients want a sense of why candidates are applying. They want to feel like they understand you and the reason for your application. They want to make sure you understand the organisation, its issues, and the role. Make sure you've done your research and asked the right questions.
• Remember to answer the question you're asked. Sometimes candidates really want to sell themselves and their interest for the role, but they might not have shown how they can help the organisation tackle the strategic challenge that's top of mind. Highlight examples of how you meet the criteria for the role.
• If you're trying to move between industries, pull on common threads. Companies may be in different sectors but most face the same problems everyday. Boards want members who will contribute broadly. Highlight your strategic impact in past organisations, talk about change and transformation, how you've delivered improvements, and similarities in terms of size, scale and complexity.
• If you're looking for your first board role, starting small or going on a pro bono board is time well-spent. You can assess if you enjoy the work, and it helps you understand what skills you may need to develop further. Chairs of those boards can offer support and advice to help you become a better non-executive. It's also a great way to grow your network and hear about more non-executive roles.
• Be patient and persistent. Commercial board roles are hugely competitive. Boards typically get to choose from many candidates, all of whom could do the job and do it well. Don't let rejections bruise your ego. Instead, keep up your networking, personal development and applications, and the right role will come around before long.
  
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