NEDs can act as mentors to young, comparatively inexperienced CEOs, often bringing 30-plus years of experience to both general management and strategic planning. This diversity in age is essential amongst board members and by leveraging their knowledge, you can boost your organisation, fast-tracking growth and gaining an objective perspective.
Non-executive directors are often well-connected in their particular industry. And in general, they tend to have excellent financial acumen, strong risk management skills and good people skills.
They can also bring specific experience to the table, which can prove pivotal in any of the life sciences fields. For example, I’ve placed a non-executive director from the oncology field with a start-up in the bio-pharma sector, and someone with a cardiac radiology background into the medtech sector. Their wealth of expertise has reaped rewards for their respective firms.
I also had the opportunity to work with a board in the field of biotechnology who were looking for a new non-executive director with specific expertise in marine biotechnology. The person I placed not only brought incredible knowledge, but also the type of experience that has helped the firm move the needle in terms of their market position and share.
To give you another example, in 2019, the NHS Health Research Authority appointed three new NEDs to their board – one was an immunologist, another a Director of Health & Life Sciences, and the third a previous board member for multiple organisations. It’s evident that each of these individuals had something of value to bring to the table.
