Rita Clifton CBE is Chair of Simplyhealth and Deputy Chair of the John Lewis Partnership. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: Why should boards care more about brand? (1:52) What framework do you use to assess brand when joining a board? (5:49) How should CEOs think about return on brand investment? (8:03) How should boards manage the lag between internal changes and market perception?(17:59) When has your brand expertise helped unlock board-level value? (20:18) What did you do at ASOS when the share price collapsed? (28:17) How should boards handle intense public scrutiny of  their brands? (31:29) Where do boards most often go wrong on brand? (37:19) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(40:44)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Fred Destin is founder of Stride VC and was lead investor at Cazoo, Deliveroo, Integral Ad Science and Zoopla. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: Where have you seen start-up board members add most value to their organisations? (1:39) How did the Zoopla board get comfortable with giving away 30% equity in one go? (6:16) How did you manage having customers on your board? (7:26) What KPIs should board members be looking at? (8:27) Have you spotted patterns across particularly valuable board members? (10:34) Why is it wrong to frame board-level discussions around value add? (19:10) You’ve said most boards destroy value - why is that? (34:47) Should board members be more like scientists and less like prosecutors and preachers? (39:48) ⚡The Lightning Round ⚡(44:20) 

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Elena Botelho is co-author of the international best-seller, The CEO Next Door, and partner at ghSMART. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: What mistakes do boards most often make in CEO succession? (1:50) How should boards use external advice when evaluating CEO candidates? (6:23) What lessons can board members learn from failed CEO hires? (19:46) How can individual board members overcome deference to powerful CEOs? (22:34) What's your framework for hiring a CEO? (25:49) Should CEOs have board roles? (32:53) How should boards decide whether to invest in developing a potential CEO candidate? (36:27) What can boards learn from the companies that consistently produce great CEOs? (40:15) ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(44:11)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Malcolm John is Founder and CEO of Action for Trustee Racial Diversity, a trustee at the Association of Chairs, and former Vice-Chair of Anti-Slavery International. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: What was your journey to the boardroom? (2:23) How do you add value to boards? (7:00) How do you gain confidence in the boardroom? (9:53) How do you make someone feel welcome on a board? (15:21) What are the lows of your non-executive journey? (17:28) How much time should you allocate to board roles? (20:15) What is the current state of racial diversity on UK boards? (22:51) What are the most common mistakes organisations make when trying to improve ethnic diversity on their boards? (31:20) How do you ensure diverse board members feel valued on boards? (33:35) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(42:34)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Christian Unger is Partner at Partners Group. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: What is the Partners Group approach to boards? (1:49) How do you attract CEOs to board roles? (5.23) What is the perfect board size? (10.18) How much ownership do individual NEDs have over specific strategies? (17:56) Where have you seen NEDs add the most value? (26:28) How do you stop disagreement for disagreement’s sake on board? (30:09) How do you measure board member value? (37:44) How many board roles are too many? (39:17) How should boards structure meetings? (40:52) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(43:31)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Dorothy Burwell is a Partner at FGS Global, NED at Post Holdings, and Pennon plc. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: What key lessons as a comms exec have shaped the way you act as a board member? (2:13) How did you navigate merging four founder-led businesses together at FGS? (4:21) How quickly should changes occur post-merger? (11:17) What advice do you give to an executive team going through a merger? (12:54) How do you discover the culture of an organisation? (13:40) How has your experience at ‘Which?’ shaped your approach to comms in the boardroom? (15:42) What are the cultural differences between a US and UK board? (20:02) How do you deal with crisis comms? (22:18) What are the classic comms errors you see boards making? (24:55) How can organisations surface and escalate crises more rapidly? (27:10) How should boards manage political shifts around things like D&I? (31:56) Should boards be politically active? (34:45)How did you transition from pro bono to paid board roles?? (40:44) And the ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(43:02)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Lisa Gordon is Chair of Cavendish and a  NED at 3i Infrastructure PLC, JP Morgan MidCap Investment Trust PLC and Magic Light Pictures Ltd. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: What sort of a NED are you? (2:10) How do you gain confidence in the boardroom? (7:37) How reliant are you on outside support to maintain your courage? (11:59) How challenging are capital markets? (15:57)  How can board members help position their organisations better in a challenging macro environment? (19:02) What should NEDs be discussing about the capital markets? (23:57) What capital market reforms are currently in the pipeline? (27:12) How can board members capitalise on the opportunities reforms will produce?? (29:46) ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(33:26) and the Audience Q and A (37:30)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Tim Jackson is the founder of QXL and a General Partner at Walking Ventures. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: What is your founder and CEO journey? (2:03) Where did the board add most value? (7:23) What do you wish your board had done for you knowing what you know now? (10:50) What are the most common reasons for a CEO to lose control of a company? (12:42) How can CEO’s better prepare for breaking point crises? (16:40) Are there patterns in behaviour of CEO’s who get the most value out of boards? (18:58) Should assessing particular characteristics be a part of CEO recruitment? (20:43) As a coach, do you ever anticipate that a board should replace A CEO before it  ends up happening? (22:22) How should CEOs adapt as their companies scale? (23:52) Do investor directors add value? (30:45) What metrics should boards be assessing their management teams on? (37:50) What macro-trends should NEDs be watching out for? (38:58) and ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(41:46)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Jurga Zilinskiene is founder of Guildhawk, Evernoon, Today Translations and Today Academy. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: How does the board at Guildhawk add value? (1:49) What roles did friends and advisors play early on in your business journey? (6:03) How did you transition from receiving informal advice to establishing a formal board? (10:32) How did your board advance your strategy? (15:37) How should boards be responding to AI? (18:39) How has your board helped you think about geographic distribution? (25:57) What makes a good NED recruitment process? (30:58) What lessons have you learned from past recruitment processes? (35:03) How do you performance manage board members? (38:22) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(41:58)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Gerry Murphy is Chair of Tesco and Burberry, Trustee at The Burberry Foundation and Senior Advisor at Perella Weinberg. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: What were the three most consequential boardroom moments for you as a CEO? (1:42) How can boards assess how much control they have over external factors? (6:26) What frameworks do you use to assess risk? (9:33) What megatrends should be shaping strategy today? (12:29) How do you decide whether a trend is structural or cyclical? (15:01) What are the practical, board-level implications of the AI megatrend? (16:51) As CEO and Chair, where have you seen CEO succession work best? (20:30) Where do you see boards adding most value now? (27:01) How should boards strike a balance between long and short term issues? (28:34) What KPIs do you ask for from the exec team? (33:32) What can private and listed boards learn from each other? (34:22) What’s stopping them from learning these lessons? (36:11) If you could design an ideal management incentive structure, what would it look like? (37:27)⚡The Lightning Round ⚡(38:24) 

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Cindy Rampersaud is NED at Sage Homes and formerly SID at Hipgnosis Songs Fund Ltd. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: How have you decided which pro bono roles to take on? (1.47) What have you gained from pro bono opportunities? (3.36) How do you build relationships on boards? (5.19)  How does a board recruit the right CEO? (10.42) What role should the board play in shaping digital strategy? (13.15) What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a trustee? (18.16) How do you navigate the pro-bono to commercial transition? (21.14) What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a commercial board member? (28.38) How do you ensure constructive dialogue on a board? (33.41) What have you learnt about crisis management in the boardroom? (37.16) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(40:01)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Kate Swann is Chair of Moonpig, Beijer Ref, Parques Reunidos, and IVC Evidensia and former CEO of WH Smith. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: As a CEO, where have seen boards add most value? (1:56) Are board members more valuable as individuals, or as a collective? (7:35) What boardroom archetypes are  most useful to a CEO? (8:54) What have you learnt from being a NED that would have made you a better CEO? (12:24) What can listed boards learn from  PE boards? (14:53) What's the thread that goes through your portfolio roles? (18:53)  What has been hardest for you during your CEO to chair transition? (21:57) Are there different CEO archetypes? (27:04) What have been the most challenging situations you have faced as a chair? (28:26) How do you allocate your time as a chair? (31:15) How have you dealt with acquisitions as a chair? (32:32) What is the difference between chair leadership and CEO leadership? (37:46)  What personal development are you doing to get better as a chair? (39:48) and ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(41:24)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Annemarie Durbin is Chair at YBS. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: How did you become comfortable as Chair of the Yorkshire Building Society (YBS)? (1:50) How much time did you commit, as a new chair, to YBS? (4:45) What lessons have you learnt from previous chair transitions? (7:48) How valuable was having a mentor during your chairship? (9:30) Who are some examples of good chairs you have served under? (11:15) What are some examples of bad chairing? (14:09) What are the most difficult situations you face as a chair?  (16:24) What is the difference between a subsidiary board and top co board? (18:38) How does the relationship between a CEO and a chair differ from that between a CEO and their coach? (21:00)Do coaching qualifications make you a better chair? (25:43) What are building societies? (28:11) What are the strategic threats facing Yorkshire Building Society? (33:18) Has previously being a company secretary made you a better NED? (36:40) Has the fact that you sat on a ‘sin-stock’ board ever been an issue in finding new non-exec opportunities? (39:54) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(41:55)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Richard Meddings is Chair of NHS England. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: What is the governance landscape of the NHS? (3:48) Which parts of the system are most interesting to get involved with as a NED? (6:17) What are the typical challenges NHS Trust board members face? (11:40) Do NHS and commercial organisations approach strategy differently? (16:01) Where have you seen NHS board members add most value? (22:02) Is the turnover of ministers a bad thing for the NHS? (31:11) How power does the NHS England board have to influence long term strategic thinking? (33:26) How did NHS England help resolve the pay dispute? (37:26) Do chairs need prior sector knowledge? (40:11) What board archetypes are NHS England looking for? (42:32) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(45:21)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

 Dr. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic is the Chief Innovation Officer at ManpowerGroup and a Professor of Business Psychology. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: How can board members add value during a CEO recruitment process? (2:05) Why do boards still hire incompetent leaders even when they know what traits and behaviours to look out for? (5:51) How should board members assess CEO’s? (13:06) Are psychometric tests useful and worth using? (18:59) What assessments show if a candidate is ‘smart, driven and honest’? (25:57) How do you identify if your CEO is a psychopath? (31:51) How do you remove a narcissist from a board? (37:33) Should boards invest in leadership development for their executives? (38:50) How do you assess someone’s coach-ability? (42:34) and ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(44:47)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Rain Newton-Smith is CBI CEO and NED at F&C Investment Trust. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: What advice would you give to CEOs preparing for a new position? (1:45) How have you built a relationship with your Chair? (8:47) How do you ensure a distinction between the roles of CEO and Chair? (13:36) How do you decide whether to share something with your Chair? (17:17) Can you offer some examples where your board has added value to you? (20.01) How has your background as an economist helped and hindered you? (23:10) What sources of support & challenge do you use as CEO? (27:27) How have your non-exec positions informed the way you operate as CEO? (30:13) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(35:01)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

John Allan, CBE, is Co-Founder of J&A Mentoring Partners. He was Chair of Tesco PLC and also served as President of the CBI. Tune in to hear his thoughts on: Why did you feel like you had to step down from your roles at Tesco and the CBI? (1:54) How should boards handle personal reputational risk? (5:15) Would you handle the situation differently now?  (7:07) When should chairs step down in a crisis? (7:57) As chair, how did you help turnaround Tesco? (10:14) How can boards balance financial returns with ethical conduct? (13:33) How did you think about strategy at Tesco? (15:48) What questions mould a good strategy? (19:39) As Chair, what frameworks do you use to help organisations with international expansion? (26:06) How did you navigate competitive threats? (28:26) How well did the Tesco board understand competition ? (32:37) How can board members get comfortable that management are on top of competitors (33:58) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(39:33)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Pamela Dow chaired the government's Inclusion at Work Panel. She is the COO at Civic Future and former exec director at the Cabinet Office. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: What were your key takeaways from the government's D&I review? (1:57) Common mistakes organisations make with DEI? (7:50) What data should inform boards decisions on DEI? (10:02) Which organisations are getting DEI right at the moment? (19:28) What are the biggest barriers to implementing D and I strategies? (26:46) Should boards get involved in politics? (30:11) What is 'HR Britain’? (34:23) And ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(40:00)    

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Stanislav Shekshnia is a professor at INSEAD, where he directs board development programs. He is Chair of TechnoEnergy AG and has held numerous chair and director positions across the EU and US. Tune in to hear his thoughts on:  How should Chairs prepare for new roles? (1:42) What can Chairs do to build a sense of team on their boards? (5:42) What are the most effective means boards can use to assess themselves? (13:21) Do you see value in constructive disagreement on boards? (15:51) Do Chairs need industry expertise? (22:21) How do you assess facilitation skills in prospective Chairs? (25:28) How do you handle a CEO who isn’t engaging with the board? (27:56) Would we be better off using professional facilitators or AI instead of Chairs? (30:39) How do you assess yourself as a Chair? (32:09) What do Chairs need to do to own the prep work? (35:38) ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(39:14)   

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Angela Seymour-Jackson is Chair of Page Group, Deputy Chair of Pikl, SID at TrustPilot Group, and NED at Future and Janus Henderson Group. Tune in to hear her thoughts on: Can you describe your journey into the boardroom? (1:47) As Chair, what archetypes do you want around the board table? (6:25) What frameworks do you use to understand the range of organisations across your portfolio? (12:32) How do you understand businesses which have less obvious purposes? (17:54) How do you make sure technology is sufficiently embedded in your organisation? (20:04) How are you approaching AI specifically? (23:23) How do you identify and prioritise strategic discussion points like AI on your boards? (28:15) How do you approach CEO succession? (32:15) Are boards too reactive when it comes to succession? (39:11) ⚡The Lightning round ⚡(42:55)

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom