Ross Williamson has been a management consultant since 1991 and has worked in the heavily regulated sectors of finance and pharmaceuticals. Earlier in his career he also worked in supply chain. After a long period of management and executive roles, he became a NED for a professional trade body in 2017. He now also chairs the Audit Committee for the trade body. For the last four years he was also NED at a professional services firm.
How did you get your first role and what useful advice would you give to someone who is just at the beginning of their boardroom career?
I didn’t search for my first role but it evolved naturally from the trade body I was already involved with.
A very important piece of advice is to remember to not get drawn into the executive role. In particular, when coming from a consultancy background like me. It is very easy to become managerial, to start giving advice and become more hands on. Your role as a NED is to stay in questioning mode and softly challenge and examine alternative approaches. It is very challenging not to get fully engaged. I know it sounds easy, but it is important to constantly remind yourself not to join the game.
Another thing I find very useful is to write down where you think you will go with questions in the meeting. Also reflect on where you lack some specific experience, what do you not fully understand? Why do you think it may not be heading in the right direction?
It is very important to frame your questions in the right way so that the person asked will think positively about it rather than feel the need to defend their position. I often use phrases like ‘What was the thinking or data behind that?’ Or ‘I really like what you have done, I am just trying to understand what the risk implications are.’ Giving the executive space to expand and clarify when needed.
How did you make the transition into becoming a NED? How do you keep up to date and on top of being in ‘good shape’ in the Boardroom?
In hindsight, starting out I didn’t do enough, but I did and still do read a lot, subscribe to online services, some useful and some less so. I mainly spend time reading the papers, thinking through how that potentially would affect the strategy of the business? Have all the risks been taken into account? Is the scale of investment in line with return? Your contribution has to leverage your experience outside as well as your understanding of the firm.
You take on a big responsibility becoming a NED, so putting in sufficient time preparing thoroughly and making sure I have good questions to ask is key for me. Once in the boardroom, it is equally important to really listen to what is being said and what is not being said.
I would suggest reading around the topics that will be discussed in the meetings and also to be on top of knowing what your duties and responsibilities are in terms of governance. So for example, due diligence around finance is essential. So if finance is a weak area of yours, I suggest signing up to a course to make sure you understand the financial consequences of decisions made by the organisation.
What has been your biggest challenge and the most difficult thing you have experienced as a NED and how did you overcome that? What is the most valuable thing you've learnt so far?
The best was successfully selling the business and the worst was that I had to resign at that point.
The most difficult thing is accepting that you can’t dictate how things are happening, but you have to rely on the skill of the Chair to ensure that balance exists. You are there to protect and challenge to ensure professional skills are being utilised but not to run the business.
The most valuable thing I have learnt is that silence is very powerful. Giving people room to speak and think often brings high quality thoughts to the table. But how do you do that? I was taught a technique by a executive coach where all board members agree that you place a large cuddly toy on the knee of the person who breaks the pre-agreed ground rules for the meeting - like interrupting, talking over people and so on. The embarrassment factor and team dynamics quickly achieve the desired outcome, typically in a light hearted rather than confrontational way.
NEDs are supposed to bring wisdom to the boardroom. What does that mean and how would you describe a wise NED?
It is about knowing what is relevant more than anything else. You bring experience as a NED and an understanding what needs to be asked and what needs to be thought through before arriving at the destination. I believe it is a combination of using experience, intuition and past learning before a decision is made.
What do you do to step out of your ‘echo chamber’ to challenge your own thinking and broaden your mindset and perspective?
I try to reverse my position. How can I challenge what I am saying? If I am not particularly familiar with something, I seek advice from peers, colleagues or friends. What I try to do is to come up with a number of view points.
What transferrable learnings and different perspective could you take to the boardroom from your life outside your work and professional life?
I take learnings from everyday life, from voluntary organisations I’m involved with and from my wife’s business. The completely different perspectives widen an appreciation of what’s possible. My biggest learning from that is that there are many different ways to come to the same outcome. Also, the financial outcome is not the only motivation behind a decision, it is as much about creating something everyone feels a part of. It also reminds you to remain empathetic, to understand the other points of view and that clear communicate is essential.
What question would you like to ask a peer NED yourself?
I would like to ask peer NEDs to observe me and give feedback, so they can suggest what I should do differently next time? Would you tweak or keep the same and why? It’s important to constantly learn and improve.
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