becoming an exceptional board director candidate · 2020-04-03 · goals what to walk away with...

with Mark A. Pfister

Becoming an ExceptionalBoard Director Candidate

National Speaking Tour (Excerpt)

Version 1.0

April 1st, 2020

G O A L Swhat to walk away with from today’s webinar...

1Creating

Your Board Director Brand

Strategy & Governance Knowledge

4

Creating Proper Board Documents

2

3

ViableBoard

Candidate

Personal Values –

Organization’s Values

©Mark A. Pfister‘Becoming an Exceptional Board Director Candidate’ Competent Boards Webinar 04/01/20National Speaking Tour (excerpt) Pg. 2

Creating your entire ‘Package’

5

C R E A T I N G Y O U R B O A R D D I R E C T O R B R A N D

have a Board Director career strategy


…this is not something you can avoid or delegate

RelevanceBoard

Director ‘Brand’

SpeakingEngagements

WritingArticles

Getting Quoted

Networking

Education & CertificationAssociations

ProperBoard

Documents

Teaching

ThoughtLeadership

Read my article, ‘The Once Taboo World of Board Director Marketing’

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/once-taboo-world-board-director-marketing-mark-a-pfister/

C R E A T I N G P R O P E R B O A R D D O C U M E N T S

using the correct terminology

Your Board

Document

Board Documents

Your Board

Bio


with an ‘s’

without an ‘s’

Remember: Your Board Document is not the same as a Résumé or CV!

important Board Document considerations

• A job résumé or CV guides you down thepath of sounding more like managementand less like leadership or governancematerial!

• The effort put into a proper BoardDocument shows that you view BoardDirectorship as a discipline, not a hobby.

Read my article, ‘7 Steps to Create a Killer Board Document’



https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/7-steps-create-killer-board-cv-pfister-the-board-architect-/

important Board Document considerations

Have 1 ‘major’ and 3 ‘minors’• Your 1 ‘major’ is typically your main title and/or expertise area(s)• Your 3 ‘minors’ should be areas that can easily be correlated to

common Board Committees

Example:Mark A. Pfister

Non-Executive Director, Board Consultant, & Business Strategist(with focus in Strategy, Governance, and Technology/Cybersecurity)

My ‘Major’ My 3 ‘Minors’ correlating to common Board Committees



important considerations for your Board Documents

Board Document• This is an exercise in concise &

precision writing!• Start with a Board Profile

summary• Board & Board Committee

experience• Board-Level experience• Executive experience• Education, Certifications,

Memberships, & ProfessionalAffiliations• Differentiator: Core personality

traits & demeanor©Mark A. Pfister‘Becoming an Exceptional Board Director Candidate’ Competent Boards Webinar 04/01/20National Speaking Tour (excerpt) Pg. 7


Board Bio• This is where you get across

your personal touch!• Start with a summary paragraph

of your accomplishments• Overarching theme of your

career (possibly include a quote from a recognizeable source)• Board and/or Board-level

experiences• Education, certifications,

article/quote references• Differentiator: Explain how your

Values drive your decisioning

the Board’s alignment with values, vision & mission

P E R S O N A L & O R G A N I Z A T I O N V A L U E S

What do we stand for?Ethics, principles, beliefs

Where are we going?What do we aspire to achieve?Hope, ambition

What do we do?Who do we do it for?Motivation, purpose

How are we going to progress?Plan, Goals, Sequencing

What do we have to do?How do we know?Actions, owners, timeframes, resources, outcomes

Values

Vision

Mission

Strategic Objectives

Tactical Actions, Tasks, & Key Performance Indicators (KPI)


Values are guiding principles that dictate behavior and action of your Board, management, employees, and vendors…

““

the Board’s alignment with values, vision & mission



VisionValues Mission Organization Goals

Committee sub-Goals

Organization Delivery

Capability

1 2 3 4 5 6

è Cumulative Comparison è

Consideration Overlays

Budget Scope Time

board decisioning process

Initiative filtering - vetting & decisioning



B O A R D G O V E R N A N C E & S T R A T E G Y

Board governance framework

Board Governance

Board Governance

Corporate Governance

Corporate Governance

Boar

d G

over

nanc

e Board Governance

Corp

orat

e G

over

nanc

e Corporate Governance

Stra

tegy

Gov

erna

nce

Perf

orm

ance

Inte

grity

Tale

nt

Risk

Ope

ratio

ns

Plan

ning

Repo

rtin

g

Com

plia

nce


Read my article, ‘Why Do Boards Continue To Struggle With Strategy?’

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-do-boards-continue-struggle-strategy-mark-a-/

the evolution of strategy has gone through multiple changes

WarStrategies &

Conflict Deterrence

Politics & Exclusivity

IndustrialProficiency

Strategy Heydays

Strategic Proliferation

1969 - 1990s1900 - 1968500BC through 1900

What I am calling

“Amorphic Strategy”

1990s – 2010s 2010s - ?

War

Politics

Business

?????????



board strategy: foundational elements

Goals TasksStrategy

Objective Action

What? How? When (+Who)?

Set & Ensure Relevance Validate Approach Measure

Progress

Gov

erna

nce

Prin

cipl

eLe

ader

ship

B O A R D O P E R A T I O N A L C O M P O N E N T S


let’s redefine the definition of strategy...

A strategy is a set of guiding principles that,when communicated and adopted, generates adesired pattern of integrated decision making.

Old Definition: A strategy is a careful plan ormethod, usually over a period of time, toachieve a specific goal.

…in support of the Goals.



C R E A T I N G Y O U R E N T I R E P A C K A G E

have a Board Director career strategy

Certification

Expertise

Experience

‘The CareerTrifecta’

(know-how)

(knowledge application) (proof)


go all in


C R E A T I N G Y O U R E N T I R E P A C K A G E

Creating Your Board

Director Brand

Strategy & Governance Knowledge

Creating Proper Board Documents

Personal Values –

Organization’s Values

Read my article,‘Top 5 Mistakes Board Candidates Make’

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/top-5-mistakes-board-candidates-make-pfister-the-board-architect-/

Y O U R B O A R D C A N D I D A C Ygo forth and conquer

Follow my strategies: monthly newsletter signup

Approach your Board Candidacy in a disciplined

manner

Use this presentation

as your roadmap

Check out ‘Becoming an Exceptional Board Director Candidate Course’ at

www.PfisterStrategy.com/consulting

[email protected]

©Mark A. Pfister‘Becoming an Exceptional Board Director Candidate’ Boardroom Bound 5/15/19National Speaking Tour (excerpt) Pg. 18©Mark A. Pfister‘Becoming an Exceptional Board Director Candidate’ Competent Boards Webinar 04/01/20National Speaking Tour (excerpt) Pg. 18

http://eepurl.com/ScRcX

http://www.pfisterstrategy.com/consulting

M A R K A . P F I S T E RWith a strong focus in Strategy, Governance, and Technology / Cybersecurity, Mark A. Pfister is CEO of M. A. Pfister StrategyGroup, an executive advisory firm that serves as a strategic advisory council for executives and Boards in the private, public, andnonprofit sectors. He is also Chairman & CEO of Integral Board Group, a specialized Board services and consulting company. Mr.Pfister is a 'Board Macro-Influencer' and his success has been repeated across a wide range of business situations andenvironments. He prides himself on being a coach and mentor to senior executives and directors. In Board Director circles, Mr.Pfister has earned the nickname 'The Board Architect.’

The overarching theme throughout his career has been his aptitude in leadership positions, passionate focus on people, unique governance models,and ability to create value for stakeholders through innovative business strategies and operational excellence. Michael Lorelli, Executive Chairman ofRita’s Franchise Company, has said, “Mark’s unusual combination of excelling at a macro and micro grasp of business, genuine interest inGovernance, and ability to coach and mentor a Management Team make him a terrific Independent Director.”Mr. Pfister is a certified project management professional and frequently serves as an expert Project Executive, consulting on global projects in theirinitiation and operational phases, as well as programs requiring remedial focus to bring them back on track. He has deep knowledge and experiencein Board design & operations, strategic planning, business transformation, technology implementations, decisioning processes, continuing educationprograms, executive coaching, and governance models.Previously, Mr. Pfister was CEO of Pro4ia, Inc., an international consulting and professional services company specializing in a wide range oftechnology solutions utilizing formal Project Management as a proven and repeatable delivery method. With a Fortune 50 client list, Pro4ia wasCitibank's Nominee for Crain’s Magazine 'Entrepreneurship of the Year' Award in 2005. He simultaneously served as CEO of Onit, Inc., a nationalsourcing company specializing in placements for all levels of technology skill sets. Mr. Pfister was also the National Program Office Leader forAmerican Express leading some of the largest technology transformation initiatives in the company’s history. He served as a Licensed EngineeringOfficer in the U.S. Merchant Marine, holds a B.S. from the State University of New York Maritime College in Facilities Engineering, and completedHarvard Business School's Executive Education Program for Board Directors.Mr. Pfister is the creator of the ‘Board as a Service’ (BaaS) engagement model, an industry he is credited with inventing. He is a Master Speaker andconducts national speaking tours, lectures, and seminars focused on effective leadership, strategy, Board architecture, becoming and exceptionalBoard Director candidate, professional project/program management, and entrepreneurship. His popular book, 'Across The Board: The ModernArchitecture Behind an Effective Board of Directors,’ an Amazon best-seller with over 13,000 copies in circulation in 70 countries, has influenced awhole new generation of Board Directors.Mr. Pfister is a proficient Board Director and CEO with experience across multiple industry verticals. He is typically the Chair, or a member of theStrategic Planning Committee, Governance Committee, Technology & Cybersecurity Committee, and Nominating Committee. Mr. Pfister’sexperience as a renowned Board Consultant, having guided and coached hundreds of Boards, Board Committees, and Board Members, additionallyoffers up unique and informed viewpoints to the companies he serves.He holds a Masters Professional Board Certification through the American College of Corporate Directors (ACCD), is a member of the NationalAssociation of Corporate Directors (NACD), is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) through the Project Management Institute (PMI),and holds a Certified Cyber Intelligence Professional Board Certification (CCIP) through the McAfee Institute.

[email protected]
