In at least half of the meetings I’ve had with non-executive directors and almost all the meetings with head hunters, their advice has been to seek a role on a government board.  Government boards are regarded as good places to gain experience and make connections.  How one achieves that is another thing…

The Federal and NSW Governments both have registers for women seeking board positions. No doubt similar registers exist in the other states.  As it’s the obvious place to start, I register and receive automated replies acknowledging such.  Given that, as with all things, a personal interaction is usually more helpful, I try to find a way to add a personal element to my submission on the register.  It takes a fair bit of research but eventually I have a conversation with the person responsible for maintaining the NSW register, only to be told that it works a little like a matching database and there is no opportunity to have any personal contact.  No response to from the person who maintains the Federal Government database…

The search for some personal contact continues.  A friend with contacts forwards my CV directly to the NSW Treasurer. I receive a letter from a member of his staff acknowledging it and suggesting that I register on the NSW register. Hello, I’m already on it!  Didn’t anyone cross-check??

Finally, one of my coffee meetings elicits the name and number of the person who manages the process of recommending directors for NSW State Owned Corporations (SOCs). He described the multi-layered approach to coming up with a shortlist of names for board vacancies for SOCs, which seems to involve the existing chairman and board, possibly head hunters the board has appointed, the Treasurer and his staff and possibly another Minister and his or her staff. He went on to explain that his role is to manage the process to a point and then from the time of the interviews to a decision being made, the process is out of his hands and the time it takes is variable; it rests with the Ministers, the competing demands on their time and, inevitably, some politics.  With the patience obviously gained working in government, he explains that the process is not dissimilar to that of the corporate world – it helps to be known by the people involved in the process.

Looks like getting into government roles will take a few more coffee meetings….

Coffee count: 148