Board Shorts Podcast

Are you tired of waiting for the perfect advertisement to appear, or feeling unsure of where to even begin your search? With over 90% of Board roles never seeing a public job board, mastering the hidden Board seat market through strategic networking is the ultimate key to your success.If the thought of networking gives you the "heebie-jeebies," don't worry. In this episode, I strip away the traditional, exhausting idea of networking — no meaningless small talk or throwing business cards around like confetti required. Instead, I walk you through a highly targeted "map and tap" framework designed to help you leverage your existing connections and strategically expand your reach to secure your ideal Board seat.Whether you are seeking your very first seat at the table or looking to build out a paid portfolio career, this episode provides the roadmap you need to build, nurture, and leverage your network effectively.Key TakeawaysEstablish your foundation first: Before reaching out to anyone, you must clearly define your target and articulate your Unique Board Value Proposition.Tap into your existing circle: Your current colleagues, mentors, clients, and even family friends already know, like, and trust you. Use them to calibrate your goals and gain honest feedback.Make highly specific requests: Vague asks like "keep me in mind" can actually damage your professional credibility. Always be specific about what you are looking for and how others can assist you.Expand your reach strategically: Grow your connections through warm introductions from your existing circle. If you choose to attend events, ensure you are fishing where the fish are.Nurture for the long term: Treat your connections as a two-way exchange of value. Share relevant resources, check in regularly, and consider tracking your outreach to maximise your return on investment.Links & Resources MentionedFree Download: Grab your copy of the Networking for Board Success WorkbookFurther Reading/Listening: Resources for setting your target and getting clear on your value proposition.Setting a Board Goal🎧 Break into the Boardroom Series: Set a Board Goal | Ep. 102📑 How to Set a Board Goal🎧 Setting and Calibrating your Board Goal | Ep. 49Unique Board Value Proposition🎧 Break into the Boardroom Series: Understanding your Unique Board Value Proposition | Ep. 103🎧 Answering the "Why You" Question: Mastering Your Board Story | Ep. 133🎧 The Ingredients of your Unique Board Value Proposition | Ep. 98📑 Your Board Search: Developing Your Unique Value Proposition📑 Yes, You Do Have Something to Offer a BoardBuilding a Network🎧 Stop “Networking” and Start Building a Network | Ep. 135🎧 Strategic Networking to Unlock Board Opportunities | Ep. 104 Ready to get serious about your search? Explore resources, self-paced courses like Break into the Boardroom, and VIP programs designed to help you win at the boardroom game at getonboardaustralia.com.au If you enjoyed this strategy session, please hit the Follow button so you never miss an episode!

You're working 50 hours a week, managing a team, and smashing your corporate KPIs. But you're also looking up at the Boardroom and thinking, 'I think I'm ready for that next strategic step.' So, when is the right time to pull the trigger and start a Board Career? This episode breaks down the why, the where, and the how of balancing Board service with a full-time career. Whether you're early in your professional life or mid-to-late stage and wondering what comes next after executive life, the reality is that the best time to start working on your governance goals is right now, even in the midst of life and work. What You'll Learn: The Power of Compounding Experience: Why treating your governance journey like a savings account that builds interest over time puts you in a highly competitive position later in your Board Career. The Career Boost: How the exposure to strategic oversight, risk management, and macro-industry insights gained around a table directly enhances your day-to-day executive leadership. Finding Accessible Entry Points: How to identify realistic grassroots opportunities, such as local sports clubs, community groups, and small NFPs, that match your capacity and welcome first-time Board Members. The Vocation Mindset: Why you must approach every single position with the same rigor and dedication as a listed company role, rather than treating it like a casual side quest. Managing Conflicts of Interest: Practical strategies for aligning with your current employer, protecting transparency, and ensuring you have the full capacity to govern effectively. Lisa's Time Management Playbook: Balancing a demanding day job with governance requires ruthless organisation and discipline. Here are the practical tips shared in this episode to help you protect your time and your mental bandwidth: Plan Far Ahead: Ensure the entire year of Board Meetings is scheduled by September or October of the previous year so you can book preparation time well in advance. Enforce Pack Hygiene: Maintain strict rules around meeting pack distribution, ensuring all papers are sent out at least one week ahead of schedule. Protect Preparation Time: Set up dedicated blocks to review papers early enough to research, digest, and submit questions to relevant stakeholders before the meeting starts. Overestimate Needed Capacity: Give yourself a buffer for larger-than-usual packs, and leave yourself enough mental bandwidth to think clearly, stay effective, and enjoy proper downtime. This Week's Challenge: Stop waiting for the perfect moment; it does not exist! Look around your local community, sport, or industry sector this week. Where can you raise your hand, step up, and offer your expertise and contribution to an organisation that genuinely needs your skills? Links and Resources: Visit the Get on Board Australia website to discover tools and strategies to help you navigate the hidden market and win at the Board game. Explore entry-level governance advertisements and volunteer opportunities via GoVolunteer.com.au or LinkedIn. Connect with Lisa Cook on LinkedIn to receive insights on how you can secure your first, next, or paid Board role.

I am frequently asked about the meaning of various board and corporate governance terms. To many people, this part of business seems to be opaque and closed off, using language as a way to keep people away from wanting to get into this level of corporate leadership. So, I’m here to help bust through this particular corporate veil by providing a non-exhaustive list of definitions of various aspects of corporate governance and board life, working our way through the A-Z of corporate governance. This episode will cover A-M, and episode 81 will cover N-Z (getting interesting when we get to W, X, Y, and Z!). Let’s start our ABCs of corporate governance…Here are some resources mentioned in this episode:Article:Corporate Governance Defined: Not So EasyBy James McRitchie for CorpGov.nethttps://www.corpgov.net/library/corporate-governance-defined/ Book: Directors at Work: A Practical Guide for BoardsBy Kiel, Nicholson, Tunny, and Beckhttps://www.amazon.com.au/Directors-Work-Practical-Guide-Boards/dp/0864607806?&_encoding=UTF8&tag=getonboardaus-22&linkCode=ur2&linkId=b41d43ba8b271c5f8ef279dc59668d70&camp=247&creative=1211 

Given that conversations around the board table can get a little heated and some issues can become quite contentious, we have bought Organisational Psychologist Shelley Rogers onto the podcast to talk about the ways in which you can use different strategies and approaches when the conversation gets a little prickly in the boardroom to stop it becoming nasty.

A conversation with special guest Noel Verma, Senior Manager at PwC and Boardroom Bootcamp contributor, talking about innovation in the boardroom. We cover why innovation needs to be a boardroom conversation, how smaller organisations can adopt an innovation agenda, where to start an innovation programme, how the board can support innovation, what holds organisations back from innovating, plus a takeaway that you can apply to your organisation today.

Earlier in March we celebrated International Women’s Day, so there has been a lot of conversation around women, and in our space, women in the boardroom. I believe that board diversity is something that we should strive to achieve. It makes for a much more interesting and rewarding board experience and improved outcomes for the organisation.I share some thoughts about how boards can go about increasing their diversity and also how aspiring board members can take advantage of the opening up of the boardroom. Listen to the podcast now below.Additional information and links mentioned in the podcastBlog PostsTowards True Board DiversityHow to Improve Board DiversityArticleBuilding a Not-For-Profit Board

One of the most commonly asked questions I get is “how do I get on a board”. And it makes sense. Boards seem like really cool places to be and the title of director or board member is a neat thing to have. There’s lots of information out there about what to do once you’re on a board; but not so much about how to get on one in the first place.Episode one of the Board Shorts podcast covers six steps that aspiring company directors and board members can take to get themselves in the position to be asked to join a board.