Governance Consulting & Training
Tired of walking the tightrope between operations and governance? Stuck in the weeds? Worried about your liabilities?
It can feel overwhelming when thinking about board practice – What do you need to have in place? What do other boards do? How do you monitor the work of the organisation? – You need someone to walk the path with you and make the next steps clear.
With my wide-ranging experience as lead facilitator for the Institute of Directors Company Directors Course, director and chair across boards such as Lotto NZ, Accuro Health Insurance and Youthline, I will guide you with what works best for your organisation, to meet your strategic goals, at your pace.
I work with the Government/regulatory sector, for-purpose, social service and healthcare boards (committees, trusts... whatever form you take!) which are values-based and make a positive difference to our communities.
Work with me to create a smooth-running board (with the niggles removed), to hold the right conversations and bring on new directors with ease.
(Disclaimer: I'm not a lawyer or an accountant so won't review things
from that perspective. I focus on how your governance systems work best
to meet the needs of your organisation and stakeholders.)
The Governance Healthcheck
First – make a Discovery call:
- Free 30-min online call to discuss your needs and determine the process to follow (book via the Contact page)
Then – enrol in End the overwhelm:
- Review of your current governance documentation in whatever state it is now (don't panic, I've seen it all before!)
- Review of board packs and reporting structures, committees, meeting agendas and the process of running board meetings
- Review how board decisions relate to the business
Process:
- Paper-based review and meeting with key staff as required to discover current practice
Outcome:
- Review document – next steps are suggested throughout the process and implemented as practicable
- Practical resources provided to support implementation
- Accountability session included approximately 1 month later to review your progress and answer any questions
Or – book a Taster training session:
If you'd like to get a sense of what it's like to work with me first, then book a 45-min online training session – there are 3 to choose from. It can be timed to fit around your board's needs
- Governance 101 – how to think and act like a board
- Walking the tightrope between operations and governance
- Wellbeing for directors – who looks after you?
Next steps to choose from
Get the nuts and bolts sorted:
- Full board training designed in response to the foundational review outcomes
- Support to set up clear actions from the review - either as a full board workshop or working directly with the CE and Chair
- Monitoring the work of the organisation
- Effective onboarding of new directors
- Advanced documents package including risk and H&S
- Build the confidence to have the right conversations
- Board evaluation (including a focus on the chair) and skill matrix
Building your capability:
- 1:1 mentoring of key roles – short-term goals, or ongoing support for reflective practice (CE, chair, board secretary, new directors)
- Strategic planning workshops or review
- Health and Safety short sessions - review of recent cases and an evaluation of your own board practice
- Board strengths and values alignment – how well do you know each other?
Participate don't facilitate:
- Facilitation of important conversations and workshops, drawing on my experience of running hundreds of sessions and expertise as a wellbeing and mental health professional
- I bring an impartial stance to the facilitation and my wider environmental lens from the world of governance to the discussion
- I value working in partnership with Te Tiriti o Waitangi
FAQs on Governance mentoring
What is governance mentoring?
There is a difference between coaching (which builds individual reflective practice and supports a person to achieve their goals, which the coach may not themselves be expert in) and mentoring (which assists with building specific skills in which the mentor is experienced themselves, by sharing their knowledge).
I initially offer mentoring in the governance world as I believe that what directors often need is the specific knowledge and skills required to hit the ground running immediately upon your appointment. The legal structure and practice context of the appointment may be different to the world you have built your career in, and the governance role requires a different lens to that of a senior executive.
As you become more comfortable and familiar in the role the mentoring shifts to a coaching approach, where you are guided to uncover your own insights, boosting your motivation and making meaningful and sustainable change more likely. I am a trained neurocoach through the NeuroLeadership Institute (David Rock and colleagues) and tap into how the brain learns and changes to build the mindset and resilience needed to thrive long-term.
What does governance mentoring and coaching look like in practice?
I work with new clients a minimum of 4 times over the first year. I often find that clients want to meet just prior to or following board meetings (depending on their needs) which can increase the frequency.
In the sessions we establish:
- what brings you to a governance role – what are the motivators for being on a board?
- the level of knowledge you hold of board governance practice and responsibilities (which is different to internal organisational or clinical governance processes)
- your own skill profile in relation to the board role you hold
- the workplan of the board and what you will be expected to contribute to over the year
- what strengths you bring to the table
- what changes do others expect in your performance by the end of your first year
- what you would personally like to accomplish
We then follow a structured process aligned to the board workplan, so you receive information when you need it, relevant to the decisions being made.
What does governance mentoring look like for experienced directors?
More experienced directors often seek out mentoring when moving to a different sector or entity type, to ensure they are considering the appropriate criteria for decisions. This may be for a limited period of time, or may shift to a coaching approach, where a sounding board is preferred to advice.
Who benefits from governance mentoring?
Mentoring is best for new or emerging directors, who may be technical experts in their own careers, but are new to the world of governance – being on the other side of the board table. This approach is particularly helpful in supporting the shift from an operational perspective to a governance one. If you are a confident and experienced director we would move straight to a coaching approach.
What does governance mentoring not include?
Governance mentoring does not necessarily include access to the mentor’s networks or guarantee a future role on a board. This is why I prefer to work with people once they have secured their first role, so that questions are specific to the board they are on and the nature of the organisational structure. However I am happy to be approached if you are interested in learning more about what a governance role or career may look like, to see if it’s a good fit.
