Is anyone a None Exec Director here ?

[DSLiverpool]

Never ever crossed my mind that this was a "career path" and whilst I am in "flux" I am looking at it.

Anyone with any input would be most welcome - PM me if not for public consumption.

I see that one way of finding the "jobs" is via a search site - not sure if the "pay us £x and we get you jobs" model is the right one however.

[bob-in-toon]

If you want non exec roles you are best off introducing yourself to corporate finance outfits, fund managers, VCs, investor / angel networks etc.

Another way is to simply invest in a business and become a non exec.

It also depends what you are bringing to the party - where you have areas of expertise, background, track record, contacts etc.

[surveyor]

You may have already pursued this but you've probably also got skills that' a startup would find valuable whether on a paid basis or via one of the schemes. Probably not a career path but rewarding way to spend a little time

[DSLiverpool]

Bob - I am doing some short term work with a VC now but I dont think I like VC`s (maybe just me) what I have realised is an awful lot of bullstters out there talk it but cant actually do it or fanny around so much it takes forever. Very few have owned a business and lots have short tenures in employment - looking at noneexecdirectors.com tells me that, tellingly a lot of the younger ones are in 2 year periods .....

Surveyor - I would happily give up time to mentor / discuss / advise small / new ventures but what mechanism would one use to meet them ? I would do it for free on the basis of I may find a golden nugget!

[bob-in-toon]

Ok understood. What sort of businesses / sectors are you looking at?

[ikarl]

There's a business there! If you can't find a way of doing it, set up a site that allows you to connect small business with mentors and vice-versa

[DSLiverpool]

bob-in-toon said:

Ok understood. What sort of businesses / sectors are you looking at?

I was a channel sales director and a key account director for the largest electrical component maker in the UK and I was sales director for the largest HVAC manufacturer selling in the UK before I started my online telecoms company. I relish sales challenges and would love to get involved in start ups (even for free) as I do enjoy sales challenges. Where do I find those roles? I do not need to earn much or anything but I need to do something and I really cant see myself setting up again (but I will if no other options)

[surveyor]

DSLiverpool said:

Bob - I am doing some short term work with a VC now but I dont think I like VC`s (maybe just me) what I have realised is an awful lot of bullstters out there talk it but cant actually do it or fanny around so much it takes forever. Very few have owned a business and lots have short tenures in employment - looking at noneexecdirectors.com tells me that, tellingly a lot of the younger ones are in 2 year periods .....

Surveyor - I would happily give up time to mentor / discuss / advise small / new ventures but what mechanism would one use to meet them ? I would do it for free on the basis of I may find a golden nugget!

Speak to the local business chamber would be my suggestion. Thery will know of any Schemes locally.

[DSLiverpool]

surveyor said:

DSLiverpool said:

Bob - I am doing some short term work with a VC now but I dont think I like VC`s (maybe just me) what I have realised is an awful lot of bullstters out there talk it but cant actually do it or fanny around so much it takes forever. Very few have owned a business and lots have short tenures in employment - looking at noneexecdirectors.com tells me that, tellingly a lot of the younger ones are in 2 year periods .....

Surveyor - I would happily give up time to mentor / discuss / advise small / new ventures but what mechanism would one use to meet them ? I would do it for free on the basis of I may find a golden nugget!

Speak to the local business chamber would be my suggestion. Thery will know of any Schemes locally.

Good call, I know the liaison pretty well from when the tried to help my company (!)

[silverous]

I would steer clear of any regulated sector as the requirements are becoming more and more onerous and I'm not convinced that remuneration matches it.
Being pedantic, I believe it is non-exec and not none-exec.

[DSLiverpool]

surveyor said:

Speak to the local business chamber would be my suggestion. Thery will know of any Schemes locally.

Spoke to Wirral chamber and to a person who knows me and they have a mentoring program crying out for "people like me" she said (?!) its unpaid but thats not the main objective. Thank you the obvious isn't always the most obvious!

[foliedouce]

I'm a NED of 3 business, one of which I co-founded and moved from an operational role to a NED role. The other 2 I was offered through word and mouth through friends. Renumeration is salary on one and day rate on the other, I only have equity in the first one, although one of the others is looking for some investment (for equity) which we are talking about at the moment.

If you want to avoid VC (don't blame you and they usually have their own guys anyway), then I found as soon as I put Non Exec as a job title on LinkedIn I got proactively approached by specialist NED recruitment agencies and was invited to a NED LinkedIn group. Via those I get loads of opportunities emailed to me every week, although the I've never followed any up as I don't have time. I'm away at the moment but can dig out the information if it's helpful when I get back (18th).

It can be very rewarding as a role, but I have to say I have found the transition from running a business as CEO to doing purely NED work (that's all I do now) tough, probably because I like to 'own' and control things.

[DSLiverpool]

foliedouce said:

can dig out the information if it's helpful when I get back (18th).

Much appreciated - thanks

[Doofus]

DSLiverpool said:

Where do I find those roles?

Do you still have a relatonship with your accountants/auditors?

I'm not NEDding at the moment, but this is where opportunities have come from in the past.

[MrDan]

DSLiverpool said:

Spoke to Wirral chamber and to a person who knows me and they have a mentoring program crying out for "people like me" she said (?!) its unpaid but thats not the main objective. Thank you the obvious isn't always the most obvious!

I have just started on the St Helens chamber mentoring scheme, Its a really rewarding way to spend a little time.

Any time invested is a very slow burner and you probably will never see any remuneration (its kind of against the rules anyway)

[foliedouce]

Sorry for delayed response since I got back from hols, typically no email from the NED agency, but I did get an update from the LinkedIn group which I reckon you should join (if you haven't already).

[cashmax]

As has been mentioned, being a NED is not easy if you are used to making an impact! Lots of NEDs are forced on Management teams by Private Equity and are perceived to add little value. (lots of them don't)

The ultimate way to get involved in this kind of thing is by cuddling up to VC's and PE houses. But if you think VC's are full of it you should try Private Equity. At least a lot of VC's are run by people who have built businesses and know how to deal with people. PE is overflowing with people who simply couldn't run a business if their life depended on it, but they all think they can.

[loafer123]

cashmax said:

As has been mentioned, being a NED is not easy if you are used to making an impact! Lots of NEDs are forced on Management teams by Private Equity and are perceived to add little value. (lots of them don't)

The ultimate way to get involved in this kind of thing is by cuddling up to VC's and PE houses. But if you think VC's are full of it you should try Private Equity. At least a lot of VC's are run by people who have built businesses and know how to deal with people. PE is overflowing with people who simply couldn't run a business if their life depended on it, but they all think they can.

So true.