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Toni Lynn Chinoy
President
Harlan-Evans Inc.

Don’t Even Think About Joining That Board Unless …
You’ve done the right homework. That homework entails preparing for the complex dynamics that exist in the boardroom.

By Toni Lynn Chinoy

You are now a senior executive and you have been shopping for suitable boards to join. Boards are an appropriate and perhaps necessary next step for you career ambitions.

You have asked all the right questions. Am I a good fit? Is the board position prestigious enough? Will the other board members be the right network for me? Do I offer value?

And, am I really ready for this? Will I feel myself to be an equal to the august body of individuals on a board?

If you really want to add your name to the list of notables on a specific board, then be sure to prepare yourself for the levels of complexity that exist in the boardroom.

State of Readiness

What can you do to prepare? Get some help if the following things do not come naturally:

1. Mentally prepare yourself to accept the fact that you must enter this knowing that you are an equal. This does not mean that you are not respectful to the experience and expertise of others. It means that you expect to be treated with the same respect.

2. Do not enter with a naïve view that others have the same values and principles that you do, and will therefore act appropriately. Instead, be prepared to watch for signs of manipulation and bullying that may affect outcomes you will be held responsible for.

3. When you see dysfunctional behavior, prepare yourself to confront it:
     • Get training in negotiation and confrontation skills.
     • Be savvy about different processes for critical thinking and suggest them if things bog down.
     • If you tend to avoid confrontation, get help before you get into trouble with a group of people who have no problem with confrontation. Avoiding confrontation is a psychological issue.

4. If your instinct or intuition is telling you that things are off track, trust yourself and seek information.

5. Do not even think about joining a board where employees are off limits to board members. You are liable in a situation where you have no ability to determine the truth of what is being presented to you.

6. Be careful of your own tendencies to bully or manipulate. You may believe that you are smarter or more experienced than others, but try to remember that sharing the responsibilities for decisions is not only safer, it’s smarter. Imagine if you get completely invested in your outcome and you are wrong (surely that happens sometimes). Don’t set yourself up by being rigid and wrong. Look for ways to integrate ideas and directions, rather than becoming stuck on your way being the only way.

7. Learn to manage the fear when financials are challenging. Too often, decisions are made which damage the long-term viability of the organization in order to look good for the stockholders. If you participate in doing so, you are accountable when the company flounders later. (Even if you bail out before it all comes to a head, you are still morally responsible for bad decisions you supported.)

Moving Forward
The intention of these warnings is not really to put you “off” boards. It is to prepare you for the leadership role you covet. Joining a board is not simply a way to advance your own importance or career. Joining a board should be a way of “giving back” by using your experience, skills, and influence to make companies stronger.

Do prepare yourself to do so, rather than simply focusing on the collateral value the board offers for your own agenda.

Toni Lynn Chinoy is the president of Harlan-Evans Inc., a leadership development company, and an executive coach who works with senior-level leaders from around the world. She coaches her clients at an executive retreat on a 150-acre Virginia horse farm outside of Washington, D.C. Her blog “Shortcuts to Grace” offers further insights on leadership dynamics and dysfunctional behavior. She can be contacted at toni@harlanevans.com.