Board CV writing – where to start
Creating a CV is an exercise in succinct writing, start with your name – I like to bold it and make it larger than the surrounding text so it is easily read.
Then you should include your contact details. These need to be easily accessible so that the busy director, Chair or recruiter doesn’t have to work hard to reach you. If they can’t find a way to easily contact you, it may just be enough for them to call someone else first. Include your mobile number, your email address, a link to your LinkedIn profile and location.
Photo or no photo? I religiously remove them from the CVs I write for my members. I do so because people spend too much time looking at your photo and not enough time considering the content. Further, photos, whilst looking great on your computer have a tendency not to translate well to paper. Beyond this your photo will bring unintended connotations.
"These need to be easily accessible so that the busy director, Chair or recruiter doesn’t have to work hard to reach you."
Always include your board profile
Next, you need to include your board profile. If you haven’t yet you need to write this immediately. In essence, this section briefly summarises your board or committee experience (either as an executive or non-executive) and how long you have been working with or on boards.
Board and committee experience
Next, you must add a list of your Non-Executive and Committee Experience. Do it in descending order, starting with your most recent role. Do not limit your examples to just formal non-executive directorships; you can legitimately include sub-committee or committee memberships and other formal responsibilities that had a strategic or governance perspective.
If you haven’t had any board or committee experience, you should not include this section. Once you have gained your first appointment, you can insert it.
"Do not limit your examples to just formal non-executive directorships"
Executive experience
Following the Board Level Experience section, is your Executive Experience. This section lists, again in descending order, your executive career roles.
Whilst you might be tempted to cut and paste this entirely from your executive CV, you should first edit it. You need to strip all the context and minutiae out of your CV. Focus on your successes and your strategic success. In the context of applying for a board role, the reader is going to be interested in your governance, strategic and macro experience. You should not include the level of detail about what you do on a day to day basis in this section.
"the reader is going to be interested in your governance, strategic and macro experience"
Under each example, you should provide a list of:
The sub-committee positions you have held – for example, audit, governance, remuneration, nominations committees and the success you have had on these committees.
Your key executive responsibilities – again, answer the question ‘why were you appointed to this role?’
Include some demonstrable evidence of success as an executive in the organisation – think about listing the reasons you would provide to argue for a pay rise or a bonus. Be as specific as possible and include statistics or numerical evidence. Don’t, for example, just state that you were a senior executive, as this does not demonstrate that you were a good senior executive.
Evidence your Success (b)
Once you have done this, it is time to revisit the Board and Executive Successes section. You should cherry-pick some of the most relevant or largest successes you have already included in your CV and put them here.
There will be some duplication at this point but that is fine, as it will reinforce the idea that you are good at what you do and can add meaningful value to the organisation you are applying to sit on the board of.
However, this is only going to be the case if you choose the right examples of success that are relevant to the reader of the CV. Listing every success you have ever had is not going to help your CV be readable, impressive or read.
"choose the right examples of success that are relevant to the reader of the CV"
Your qualifications, memberships and extra – professional activities
Next, you need to list both your tertiary qualifications and any professional development you might have undertaken. This is straightforward but also important, as boards are looking for both experienced and qualified directors.
After your qualifications, you should list your professional memberships, special interest groups, languages spoken or relevant personal activities that might positively impact on a board appointment. The list of memberships that you have might include memberships to Governance or professional bodies.
Also, list extra professional activities and personal interests. Extra professional activities are things that you have done outside of your professional life but are not purely social. For example, you may have presented at conferences, written papers, been invited as an industry expert to contribute or have been given an award. These can all be included in this section.
"professional activities are things that you have done outside of your professional life but are not purely social."
Include, briefly, a little of your personal life – what you enjoy doing outside of work. This section is unlikely to get you appointed alone but it is always read and it is possible to gain a connection with the reader that might work in your favour.