Board work is a fascinating thing. There are many misconceptions and strange ideas about it. Yet, it can significantly influence a company’s directions and strategies. Over the past three months, I got some questions, primarily as DMs on social media, asking about my take on governance, cybersecurity work, and board seats. While some have made it into longer posts, others have not. From rejecting seats to investor seeds in pre-seed rounds, here are five audience questions about board work.
Should You Reject a Non-Profit Board Seat?
It depends on how much you care about the organization’s mission and how much time you can give the non-profit. Most non-profits that have reached out were new organizations, searching more for donors than actual board members. Consequently, they didn’t align with my vision of what I could contribute to improving the world.
Then, there was one large internet privacy organization. While the offer was charming, it came at the wrong time, and I wouldn’t have had enough time to contribute to their mission.
On the other hand, I didn’t hesitate to join the board of the Constructor University Foundation. At that point, the time commitment and the organization’s mission aligned with my ideas.
Thus, I understand if you reject a seat. However, be open with your reasons, particularly as things like time commitments and skills might change.
How do You Come Up with Good Questions in a Board Meeting?
Preparation and active listening are the two crucial aspects of the board meeting. Each item has a limited amount of time in the board room. Thus, you can get a lot of eye-rolling if the answer to a question is a variation of “See page 2.” On the other hand, any question that points out a clear, logical gap in the argumentation or anything pointing to an overlooked risk shouldn’t hold you back.
Generally, board mentors are a good source of feedback. If you have any questions before the meeting, you can contact them and find out whether to send them in writing or wait until they are in the board room. After the meeting, they can also give you feedback on whether your questions were appropriate or if the board culture expects a different way of asking.
Lastly, don’t expect yourself to speak up on every topic. Some topics, like strategy or risk discussions, will undoubtedly require you to speak. Others, like financial figures and audit reports, require careful preparation and listening but much less discussion time during the meeting.
Should I Give Seed Investors a Board Seat?
The answer will depend very much on your situation. I have two seats where I was the lead investor and many more investments where I didn’t ask to expand the board. In both cases, some aspects of the investments warranted asking for it.
If your lead seed investor asks for it, ask them for the reasons. In many cases, you will get an insight into your company that you might have overlooked.
However, series A almost always involves a board reshuffle. Formulating the appointment so that it can be discontinued once the next round closes can benefit everyone. The company keeps the board small, the series A negotiation can focus on optimizing the board and its procedures, and the lead from the seed round can concentrate on the next seed company. At the same time, there shouldn’t be an automatic termination, as everyone might think the current situation is advantageous.
Which is Better, Joining a Board or an Advisory Board?
Both boards are very similar and very different. They are identical because they rely heavily on procedures and rules to function. Both deal with strategic questions and shouldn’t develop into daily operations.
The advisory board often focuses on technical questions and diving deeper into a topic. Advisory boards also don’t have to deal with the formalities of running a business, such as approving results and ensuring that reports conform to the legal requirements.
However, boards have a broader focus on the strategy and a better view of the whole company. Often, their time horizon is also more focused on the future. Lastly, boards are much more deeply involved during a crisis.
I enjoy the board’s long-term, general strategy work just as much as the deep dives on advisory boards.
How Much Time Does Board Work Take?
The time requirement depends on what is going on. After getting the question for the first time, I decided to record it for February. In the four weeks, the lowest was eight hours across all positions, networking, and education. The highest was 44 hours, dominated by two important decisions at a single seat.
The 44-hour commitment was the outlier. I don’t remember any other week where board meetings and discussions took up that much time. Most of the time, the work is more asynchronous and in writing.
Depending on your point of view, you might not consider networking part of the board role. However, the time spent on it has noticeably increased after joining a board, so I decided to include it.
Keep Them Coming!
When I started writing about my experience, I never thought people would be interested in my work in the boardroom. Yet, there is a great fascination with the boardroom’s unknown. Many would like a deeper view of the boardroom procedures and my experiences of being a director. If there is anything you’d like to know about, feel free to reach out or comment on this post.