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Co-Sec 101: The Role Of The Company Secretary

The role of the Company Secretary has evolved from that of a note-taker at board meetings and an administrative servant of the board to an essential figure in an organisation’s corporate governance. Do all companies in the UK have to appoint a Company Secretary? The short answer is no. Under the Companies Act 2006, it is mandatory for Public Limited

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How To Make Risk Come Alive As A Non-Executive Director

Risk management is a serious topic and one that all Non-Executives should be focused on. The absence of an effective risk management strategy can have catastrophic results for a brand’s reputation and a company’s bottom line. It’s important for board’s to have the right mindset towards risk management where getting a balance is key. Just like you don’t want a

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The True Time Commitment Of A Non-Executive Director

The advertised time commitment of a Non-Exec is often different from the time it actually takes to effectively manage the role. This article takes a look at how NEDs spend their time, what events can cause a spike in time commitment and how the time commitment for Non-Execs varies from sector to sector.

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Becoming A NED In A Family Owned Business

A seat at the top table of a family owned business brings its own set of unique challenges and opportunities for an independent board member joining the board as a Non-Executive Director or Board Advisor. What should you consider when joining a family business board? Read more to find out.

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Shadow Directors: What Is A Shadow Directorship & How To Avoid It?

Boards are at the heart of company governance. They play a critical role in making strategic decisions, managing risks and providing oversight and accountability, and can have a significant role in shaping the company’s overall performance and impact. With great power comes great responsibility for the company Directors, but watch out: it also comes to shadow directors.

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B3Living’s experience of the Dynamic Boards Non-Exec advertising service

“We’ve recruited some great people in the past, but I’ve found you get the same pool of people applying. We really wanted to improve the diversity on our board so I came to realise we needed to do something different“. Claire Howe, Executive Director, B3Living We launched Dynamic Boards to do just that. Something different. UK boards would be more

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What to write in your Non-Executive Director role advert?

We advertise c.100 Non-Executive Director and Chair roles every month. Here are our top tips on what to include in your non-exec advert: Headlines: Name of the organisation whose board they would be joining. And if they would be joining a sub committee board within that organisation detail that in the title. The title of the role – e.g. Chair,

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Off putting wording used in Non-Executive Director adverts

Words matter. When someone is reading an advert for your board role, they should be able to gather an impression of your values and culture, understand what kinds of skills, experiences and perspectives you are looking for and figure out whether they would be a good fit.  Is that happening? Are they getting a good impression of you and your

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Data dive on housing non-exec board roles

What kind of board members are housing associations looking for? How much do they pay? And how much do they use search firms? Read our insights to find out.  Nearly half of all Housing Associations specifically look for diversity in their non-exec adverts. The group most frequently encouraged to apply for roles is people from Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic

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Non-Executive Director jargon

Trying to get your head around the difference between a Non-Executive Director, iNED, Commissioner, Associate Non-Exec or Trustee? The range of roles can make the process of looking for one feel overwhelming. We post c.100 non-executive roles a month on Dynamic Boards and they have a broad variety of titles. What do all the roles we show you on Dynamic

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NED chats ~ Mark Sweeny, Non-Executive Director, Sapphire Independent Housing

Watch our full conversation with Mark Sweeny, Non-Executive Director, Sapphire Independent Housing Highlights: ☛ Why housing associations’ have independent non-execs ☛ Has the experience of being on a housing association board changed in 30 years ☛ The COVID-19 impact on the length of board packs ☛ Innovation in housing associations ☛ The need to look at diversity in governance in a sustainable way

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Helping Housing Associations create dynamic boards

We know it isn’t easy to create a dynamic board; with a brilliant and ever changing mix of skills, experiences and perspectives. We are on a mission to help you dance towards dynamism, (rather than ticking boxes to achieve diversity)! We use data to optimise the advertising of your non-exec vacancy so you or your search firm can focus your

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Joining the Board of a Housing Association

Becoming a non-executive director of a housing association is “like getting an MBA for free”… We asked Mark Sweeny what he’d say to someone considering joining the board of a housing association. His 1 minute answer gets to the heart of it: you’d get a huge amount of personal development (akin to a “free MBA”!) and a chance to bring

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NED chats ~ Jonathan Roe, Chair of Amigo Holdings Plc

Watch our chat with Jonathan Roe, Chair of Amigo Holdings Plc. Highlights:☛Joining a board while meetings are held remotely☛ The impact of lockdown on interactions between the board and employees☛ The importance of simple or left-field questions☛ Avoiding group think Thank you Jonathan for your time! ——- If you know of a Non-Executive Director who you think Dynamic Boards should

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Tokenism on boards

Diversity awkwardness. In this series we hit the awkward topics around boards, and we try to encourage a move towards a thoughtful discussion that will drive us to create truly dynamic boards. This is #2 in the series, click here to read #1 “I’m not diversity”. “I don’t want to be asked to join the board just because I’m the

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“I’m not diversity” ~ why we advocate using the word ‘mix’

Diversity awkwardness. In this series we hit the awkward topics around boards, and we try to encourage a move towards a thoughtful discussion that will drive us to create truly dynamic boards. He started the video call by saying “So firstly, thank you for speaking with me. I know I’m not diversity. But I’m interested in chatting to you about

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Non Executive Directors for 2020 and beyond

All too often we only hear about company boards when something goes wrong. When there is a scandal we ask ‘where was the board?’ and we expect them to perform as a public punchbag. Look back 30 years, and UK boards were often trophy cabinets: the great and the good, there to show the evidence of the company’s gravitas. Look

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How Dynamic Boards uses your data

Why we’d like your data and what we plan to do with it. Purpose-led needs data-led When we started Dynamic Boards we committed to making our approach purpose-led and data-led. We exist to make UK boards more dynamic: with a stronger mix of skills, experiences and perspectives represented, for the benefit of all. When you sign up to Dynamic Boards

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What is a Non-Executive Director?

In this article, we shed light on what it is to be a non-executive director. The role of a non-executive director today is far from the stereotypes; of smoking jackets, whisky and private members clubs with panelled walls.  So, what is a NED? A fresh pair of eyes A non-executive director brings an external perspective to discussions around the board

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Dynamic Boards – Our Story

For the last ten years I’ve heard many people talk about improving the diversity on UK boards. I’ve been to countless diversity events, sat on panels as someone who has broken the glass ceiling, and heard endless discussions on the state of UK boards. But I’ve never heard a candid, public discussion on the problems with non-executive director recruitment. The

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