Soft skills make for more valuable board directors

Regardless of industry or sector, successful board directors are united by some common soft skills or personal qualities that enable them to be better and more valuable independent board directors. As an aspiring or existing independent director seeking a board appointment, recognizing and working to develop some of these attributes can only work in your favor.

Previously, I discussed the skills needed to be a board director, including skills in decision-making, analytics, financial literacy, business acumen and adaptability. In this article, I will address skills that make you a better, more valuable independent director. These are soft skills. Successful independent directors are rarely the boardroom’s most intelligent or qualified people. What they do have are several soft skills that drive value and effectiveness. Recognizing and articulating the value of your soft skills can make you a more appealing candidate to potential boards.

What are soft skills?

Hard skills are easy to quantify – they are the technical knowledge you learn in the classroom or on the job, and you prove them through certifications, degrees or other qualifications. In contrast, soft skills are more subjective and general in characteristics. They are relevant to one’s personality traits but can be enhanced through life and professional experiences.

Most soft skills that make for a more valuable independent board director are associated with a person’s emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize your emotions, understand what they’re telling you, and realize how your emotions affect people around you. It also involves your perception of others, and understanding how they feel allows you to manage relationships more effectively. People with high emotional intelligence are usually successful in most things they do.

What soft skills make for more valuable independent board directors?

From my experience working with and on boards, several soft skills stand out as traits that make people better and more valuable board directors and more sought after by board chairs and headhunters looking to recruit new board directors.

These soft skills include:

• • Self-motivation
  • Self-regulation
  • Adaptability
  • Empathy
  • Communication

Self-motivation 

Self-motivation can be considered as one’s drive to improve, succeed, commit to goals, show initiative, be ready to act on opportunities and be resilient. Independent board directors are not micro-managed; they are overseen by essential only the board chair. The responsibility to get stuff done falls on the individual board director. They must be motivated, reliable and ready to step in when needed. Valuable board directors will read every page of every report, constantly engage and network, delve deep and spend time researching. 

Self-motivated board directors are usually also resilient and optimistic, which allows them to keep going during uncertainty and setbacks, plus encourage others to do the same. Some of these traits are ingrained, but with the right mindset and experiences can be acquired and nurtured.

Self-regulation

Boards need leaders who remain calm even when stressed, not showing visible emotion. They must think clearly under pressure, enabling them to make rational decisions. They also need to be able to recognize when personal emotions and opinions that arise and separate them from the decision-making process.

Board directors who self-regulate will not allow their emotions to affect their professional behaviour. They are unlikely to say or do anything that will bring the board or the organization into disrepute. They maintain integrity and principles with a strong moral compass.

Adaptability

A modern board director must be adaptable and not set in their ways. Change is difficult and stressful for most of us, particularly the older we get. It is essential that independent board directors can manage their adaptability plus be supportive of change and change management within the organizations they represent. 

Empathy

Practising empathy at the board level is critical in improving communication, strengthening key relationships and making better decisions on behalf of all stakeholders. Empathy is the ability to observe and reflect on the experiences, perspectives and feelings of others. Practising empathy builds greater collaboration and improves productivity within a board team, particularly in challenging times.

Communication

Board directors must communicate authentically on behalf of the organization they serve whilst being transparent and truthful. However, to be an effective director, they need to be able to communicate with other board members and individuals within the organization in a manner that enables influence by being heard without being deemed as dictatorial. 

The art of communication at board level is tricky, to say the least. The board’s effectiveness and, ultimately, the organization’s success relies on good communication. The communication skills required come from real-life and professional experiences, good listening skills, and knowing when to contribute or hold back. Strong communicators can articulate complex ideas clearly and courteously. They can also determine when small politics may count for more than grandstanding. Good board directors know what to say and how to say it in any situation.

In addition, boards seek independent board directors who are well-connected and are capable of reaching out to valuable connections on behalf of the board. Specialized communication and political skills are key to establishing and maintaining these high-level relationships.

What does that mean for you?

Boards need independent directors that perform and add value to their boards. Chairs recognize where soft skills sit in this equation for the benefit of their board and their organization. To gain a seat on their board, so should you. Soft skills can set you apart during the highly competitive board appointment process. You must recognize and incorporate them into your brand and board profile. Include them in your Board CV and Board Cover letters, particularly when addressing selection criteria.

Often, gaining a board appointment is more about fit and passion than governance skills and board experience. If you lack governance skills and board experience, leverage any or all of your relevant soft skills above to demonstrate your value as a board director. Successful independent directors have worked this out and know what makes them more appointable than their competitors.

None of the soft skills I mention above is unique. Many of us already have them, but we fail to acknowledge their value at the board level. Many of these skills can be refined over time via experience, professional and personal development, taking on challenges, seeking feedback and a commitment to continual learning. 

If you struggle to differentiate yourself from the competition during that board appointment process, let us do it for you. Included in our Board Appointment PLUS membership is our Unlimited Application Review service.

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