I’m ready for the next move in my career: a great board seat. What’s the best way to set myself up?

Q: I’m a very accomplished female senior executive. I aspire to be on a good board. What’s the best way for me to accomplish this??

-Operating executive at Fortune 50 company

Dear Operating Exec,

This is a great goal. And the time has never been better. It is widely acknowledged that we need more women and other underrepresented groups in board seats. Furthermore, while director seats historically went to current or former CEOs and CFOs, that’s declining as companies are placing more value on diversity and inclusion and sourcing candidates with more varied backgrounds. Last year, according to the Heidrick & Struggles 2022 Board Monitor , a record share of seats were filled by first-time directors on public boards. Furthermore, a record share went to women. That’s the wind at your back.

But there’s also wind in your face: There are only a few board seats available every year. The number of candidates vying for these roles far exceeds the number of board opportunities available. While people may assume that there are thousands of these jobs, it’s far less. Overall, there are only around 5,000 seats total, and most are not available. As a matter of fact, there were only 449 open director seats awarded at Fortune 500 companies in 2021 per the Heidrick & Struggles study.

Here are my recommendations on how you can increase your odds and best position yourself as an attractive candidate for board seats:

?1.????Build self-awareness. Can you articulate who you are and what you are looking for?

-??????What is your secret sauce? What are these companies looking for that you can uniquely fill?

-??????How well known are you outside of your company? A lot of people think they will be good board members and they wait to be discovered but that is not the recipe for obtaining a board seat.

?2.????Hone your executive presence.

-??????Can you have conversations with people and hold their respect? There’s a gravitas that comes with the role. Show that you are capable.

-??????Build relationships with your colleagues. Become the kind of person people come to for advice.

-??????Make sure you are building a good reputation.

3.????Get to know the right people. You’ll need people who are close to CEOs to know of you.

-??????Hang out near the “watering holes.” Big VCs have recruiting arms and are always looking for talent so build connections with them.

-??????Do your homework and find out which specific recruiters are doing public company board placements. Build relationships with the people at Heidrick & Struggles and Spencer Stuart. The goal is to be a resource, not a pest. Share the names of people who are respected in your industry. It’s best to give something before you expect to get something.

4.????Join groups that can help you.

-?????Check out?Him For Her , a nonprofit that helps accelerate diversity on corporate boards by matching “board-building CEOs” with “board-ready women.

5.????Do research on board members who have had successful careers or have emerging successful careers.

-??????Study their paths and emulate them and if you have a chance ask to meet them and enlist their help and advice.

-??????Again, always build a relationship with them and serve as a resource. I always had 2-3 names ready to add to their list and help them build their network.

6.????Approach every opportunity with thoughtfulness.

-??????Research the company carefully and know what you are getting into. Even if you do a great job as a director, if the company doesn’t do well, it may reflect poorly on you.

-??????People often consider joining a nonprofit board or an advisory board as a first step, but the reality is those won’t count towards your board experience with a big company. Sure, these are good things to do but they won’t be seen as relevant, mainly because the jobs are different.

?7.????If you really want this, commit to going from thinking about it to being intentional about it.

-??????Set a goal for what you want to achieve in the next year. You have to be intentional about what you want in order to achieve it.

8.????Once you are on a board make sure that you are always adding value—and doing it in a way that is appreciated.

-??????Being an effective board member means being able to raise issues or concerns but also being constructive.

-??????In most cases, you have to stand for re-election with the shareholders every year. Serve in a way that the company and the shareholders would be happy to re-elect you.?

Every week I respond to a new question. Ask me your question in the comments section.