How to prepare for a board interview

For a first board interview, you may have plenty of experience to discuss and no previous directorship to point to. An operating decision can still be useful material. The preparation lies in explaining what was difficult about it, what you considered and which responsibility was yours.

Before the meeting, confirm whether it concerns a specific seat, a general introduction or an advisory assignment. For a specific seat, request the role description, confirm whom you will meet and ask what prompted the search. An introductory call may only need a clear account of your background and interests.

For an advisory assignment, ask which question or part of the business you would advise on and who would work with you. That will help you choose the research and examples most useful for the conversation.

For a named company, work out how it makes money, where it is committing capital and which risks recur in its reporting. Read about the directors and management. Look for what the organization has said it intends to do and what has happened since. This gives you something more useful to discuss than a summary of its website.

For a US public company, start with its latest Form 10-K and proxy statement. The 10-K is an annual filing that describes the business, risks and financial results; the proxy covers director nominees, governance and matters shareholders will vote on. Recent filings, earnings materials and committee charters can fill in the picture. For a private company, ask what financial and governance information can be shared at this stage.

Public information gives you a starting point, with some questions still unanswered. If the company has announced expansion, for example, you could ask how it is assessing the capital and management capacity required. That question follows from something you have read. It does not presume that you already know whether the plan is sound.

A nonprofit conversation needs different preparation. Read about the mission and how the organization funds its work. Ask what the board expects in financial oversight, fundraising and committee service. A corporate research checklist will miss much of what matters here.

A corporate board oversees the company while management runs its day-to-day operations. When describing a project, explain how you examined the decision as well as what the work achieved. That gives the interviewer a way to discuss your judgment without treating your operating experience as a previous directorship.

Suppose your own experience includes a major technology investment. Rather than stopping at implementation, consider what you can explain about the choice: whether the business could defer spending, which alternatives you examined, and what information was missing when you committed. If you did not take part in those decisions, choose a different example. The interviewer needs to understand the decisions you actually helped make.

Describe the part you played and the reasoning you can support. A question about an investment may lead to the assumptions behind its expected benefits or to how problems reached the people responsible for oversight. You can explain what you learned from the work without claiming that you were already acting as a director.

A result that fell short may be useful to discuss when you can account for it honestly. Explain what became apparent, what you changed and what you would examine earlier next time. Omit confidential details and avoid assigning yourself the credit or blame for everyone else’s work.

The point of rehearsal is to make the example clear enough to discuss. Leave room for questions. If an interviewer takes the conversation in a direction you had not prepared for, respond to that issue instead of returning to a memorized account.

Ask what the board needs from this appointment. The answer may concern a particular committee, a change in the business or experience that is missing from the group. Follow up on what you hear. It should help you decide whether your background fits the work being described.

Questions about how the board works are more useful when they ask for a process or example. Ask how a concern raised between meetings reaches the chair and management, or how directors obtain information when they need to examine an unfamiliar issue. These questions can reveal more than asking whether the culture is collaborative.

As a first-time candidate, ask how a new director learns the organization. Find out what information, meetings and support are available at the start. You are assessing whether you could become useful to this particular board, not trying to give the impression that you already know its operations.

Questions about time, conflicts and appointment terms need answers before you accept. For a directorship, that includes understanding the protections available to you. An initial interview need not settle all of these matters. Ask what information can be shared as discussions progress.

After the discussion, note what became clearer and what still needs an answer. If you agreed to send information, send it through the agreed contact. Correct a material mistake promptly. A brief follow-up can refer to a point from the discussion; it does not need to repeat your career history.

An unanswered question can give the next conversation a purpose. If the committee work is still unclear, for example, ask to discuss it with the person who knows it best. You are learning whether you could do the work, as well as showing why the board should consider you.