5 Things To Do Before Your Startup Board Interview
You’re already a success, but now it’s time to review the basics to knock your board interview out of the park
So, you’ve finally got a board interview with a company, what do you do now? Here at theBoardlist, we’ve spoken with both executive women and companies in the tech world about their board search and identified some of the top things that trip up otherwise rock-solid candidates during the interview process. Based on that, we’ve put together 5 things you should think about as you prepare for your board of directors interview…
1. Know the Dress Code
The tech startup world is infamous for its informal dress code — jeans and hoodie sweatshirts are the norm for many a tech startup star.
The same advice that works for a typical job interview is even more important for a board interview: Go up a level. Now, there isn’t a universal guideline for this and it will vary a bit by company, industry and location, but some good guidelines include: no jeans or t-shirts, no hoodies, no leisure wear. This is true no matter how early stage the startup is and no matter how casually the founders might dress on a normal day.
By putting on something a little more professional, you’re showing respect for the seriousness of the board itself and the opportunity. Now, you don’t have to slap on a power suit or apply wedding day-level makeup, but there should be a polished-ness to both your attire and look. This is especially important outside of the Valley. Gravitas matters.
2. Know the Company
When it comes to knowing about the company that’s considering you for their board, you should do your homework. Prep for your board interview much as you would for any other job interview. Here’s a cheat sheet on how to start:
- Company Website — take some time with the company’s website, especially parts that are kept up-to-date, like the PR/Press section, their blog or news page. Read the About page, looking over bios for the management team.
- Social Media — Check out the company’s social media accounts, check that out as well — if you’re serious about the job, it makes sense to follow/like their pages with your Twitter or Facebook account. You can also search for the company name to see what their fans/detractors/customers are saying about them. This will give you a broader understanding of the company than just reading their posts.
- Recent Press — Find out more about what’s been happening with the company lately. If they doesn’t list recent press on their website, head over to Google News and search for articles there. If the company is a startup, checkout Crunchbase or AngelList , if it’s a public company, check Bloomberg.
- Founder(s)/CEO Background — Head over to LinkedIn and/or do a Google search on the founder(s) and CEO. Have they published any articles or blogs or been quoted in the press recently? This will help you understand what might be top of mind for them ”This is especially important if yo’ve never met or heard of them before.
This isn’t just a fact-finding mission, this work will help you identify some of the potential challenges or opportunities the company may be facing in the future.
3. Know Why You’re There
You can expect whoever is interviewing you will ask why you are interested in this specific board opportunity. You should have a good answer to this question that isn’t “I want the paycheck/stock options” or “It’ll look good on my resume.” Are you looking to give back to your industry or share your expertise/experiences with the next generation, say so. In addition to answering why you want to serve on a board (especially if it’s your first one), you need to answer why you want to serve on that particular board.
In addition, it’s important to like the company and/or it’s product/industry, because you’ll be spending a lot of time and energy thinking about it. theBoardlist’s founder Sukhinder Singh Cassidy has advice on this front: “Because boards take a lot of time, you need to look at how much time they are asking for and how passionate you are about the company, the board, the CEO and what you can learn from the board.”
Also, as you get further into the board interview process, it’s important to learn more about the board and its dynamics. Ask good questions about the current board and how you’ll fit in. For example “How does the board interact together?” or “What is a serious challenge the board has faced together and how did they do it?” are great ways to kick things off. Hopefully you’ll get to interview with the board itself (if things are going well!) so think about what you’d want to know from them as well. Cultural fit and group dynamics come into play here!
4. Know Yourself
In addition to know why you want to be on their board, you should also be able to pitch yourself and why you’d be the best fit for the role. This is easier if you’ve already done your personal branding homework (we recommend having both your bragologue & superpower at the ready).
Not sure how to get started? Have brief — 2 to 3 sentences at the most — responses ready to the following questions:
- What has been your biggest work victory? Defeat?
- What is your Superpower? (the thing you are the top 5% of in the world)
- What connections/relationships do you have in our industry? Are you willing to utilize your network to help us? (this one may be particularly helpful for younger companies)
- How hands on are you as a non-executive director?
Try to speak in specifics and skip the platitudes — if you’re interviewing for a board role, it’s table-stakes that you’re a good manager and a hard worker. The board is looking for the right person to help the company grow to the next level and beyond. Make sure you can communicate that you’re that person.
5. Think Big Picture
This is great advice during both the interview and (once you’re hired) actually being on the board. Board members exist to help guide the company as part of a team, not as an operating executive. Think about when you “leveled up” from an individual contributor to a manager, director or more senior executive — and how it felt to stop diving into the details to do it all yourself and instead let your team do their jobs while you did yours. A similar shift should happen once you join your first board. No longer is it your job to “roll up your sleeves” and get the work done — instead you’re there to provide high level guidance based on your experience or expertise, aid in forming long-term strategic vision and to provide guidance when the CEO is facing hard decisions.
