Strategies of effective Board Members.

Invited by Liana Burtsava, hosting the INSEAD mixer and panel in San Francisco, I was humbled to be one of the speakers with Vincent Tauzia, Bill Unger and last but not least Sarah Van Dick (Egon Zehnder) our great moderator.

Sarah came back to our own stories, and I’d like to share a few insights. Thank you to each of the attendees and speakers, I learnt a lot by the conversation and was energized by the MBAs questions, coming to the Bay for the week, and excited to be in the Silicon Valley.

It’s a long term relationship if you choose to be a Board Member, take care to choose the people and the culture, not only the business model and vertical.

. Why did you want to be on a Board?

Practicing “guidance” is the best way to continue to learn and keep the big picture when you also have operational roles. Being a Board Member requests to ask questions and not to be the one to know and decide. Instead, you are helping the decision-makers, the CEO and the Executive team to go further.

I have spent a large part of my career with major brands in the field of luxury as an Executive with L’Oreal. My latest job was L’Oreal CEO of Lancome (#1 Brand in luxury), then I’ve spent 6 years at Orange as the CDO (Chief Strategy and Data Officer), and now I’m grateful to work with Tech startups and VCs in San Francisco.

The role of Board Member for a Public Company or a startup (in Series A, B or Pre-IPO) is a completely different experience. But there is one thing in common: it is about guiding Leaders and Founders.

?    What is the difference between a Public Board, Advisory Board, Private board and Non-Profit Board?

I will just focus in this answer on the Advisory Board role. If you’ve got the opportunity jump on it! Corporations gather every quarter a few advisors to work in depth with the Executive team on strategic challenges. 

In a Public Board, you spend a lot of time sharing short term financial results and being informed of regulation for some verticals (for instance in my role at Groupama, a European insurance company). 

As part of an Advisory Council or Board, you can spend more time on specific topics defined by the Executive team, such as the Digital Transformation, the impact of AI, or building partnerships for Open Innovation. I’m lucky enough to advise ScotiaBank, a leading Canadian bank also growing fast in Latin America, and I learn as much as I give to them. It’s truly a fulfilling experience spending time together in meetings and participating to help the leading team build the future for their company.

For Private Boards, take care of the dynamic of the group before joining, not only the Founders and CEO, but investors. Are they Business Angels, VCs, PE? Is there a trust relationship? Is it a healthy environment. Do your due diligence as information is not always public.

?    How do you get your first Board?

I began with plenty of conversations to better understand my “super powers”. Your skills are not only defined by your last job and title. I understood that my difference was being a Global manager understanding different cultures in America Europe and Asia, and giving relevant insights in Business Strategy and Brand Management, but also Customer Experience, as I had been working in a consumer goods but also in service.

Then it was easy to have the right fit for the right company and culture with a focus on being “customer centric” and help them to be successful and faster in their “Digital Transformation”.

For Startups, what helped was to have been an engaged mentor and an active Business Angel in Paris, then in the Silicon Valley.

?    What advice do you have for someone who would like to join a Board?

Be self aware. Know your “super powers”.

Choose carefully the team. Be picky! Don’t jump on the first opportunity, it’s a long term commitment and taking time to prepare, especially Public Boards (as most of the time requesting to be part of one of the Committees: compensation, audit, governance…).

If you work for a corporation, make sure your bosses support you (thank you Stephane Richard and Delphine Ernotte at Orange!).

For my American friends wanting to be part of a French or European Board, don’t forget it’s far from California and not as well paid as in the US. 

?    What makes an effective Board member / What is the role of a Board member (and what shouldn’t you do!) ?

Listening. Responding. Never over reacting.

Be courageous. Ask questions. You have a real responsibility.

What matters is the dynamic of the group. It’s not only your voice that matters but how you interact with other people and Board members.

Now Public companies have a yearly assessment of the Board and each member’s role and impact which is great to improve and track performance.

?    What was the worst Board experience you ever had?

In a Board room with the Oakland train making it impossible to hear each other every fifteen minutes and no hot coffee (!), a painful meeting as a new independent Board Member: Business Angels were pretty upset as the company was not generating revenues as planned. It’s was confusing, they were frustrated by the results, very aggressive, and challenging the Founder CEO in a non-efficient way as making him becoming defensive and not trusting them. I supported the Founder CEO as I needed them to move forward.

I’ve learnt that you need to remind all of us, Founders and Board Members being part of the same team and having one purpose, making the company successful while respecting the customers and stakeholders. 

?    What have you learned from being on boards that you can take back to your day job?

Diversity helps to be creative and perform better. Make sure there are different profiles in the Board you choose, it matters!

Learn for life. Discovering new verticals and business challenges helps me to keep asking questions and have a fresh new eye, and stay humble. 

Take good care of your users and customers, at the end it’s what makes the value of your company!