I read with interest the articles you published about non-executive directors in your 22 July issue (News, p10 and Trends, p20). I agree very strongly with Guy Hayward that experience of the recruitment market is not necessarily an essential requirement.

One of the most important roles of the non-executive is to question and to bring a fresh pair of eyes to the strategy of the business, to act as a ‘critical friend’. One would assume that the existing directors have a solid understanding of the recruitment industry and that a nonexecutive director could be used to bring other skills that the business needs.

Recruiting a non-executive should be treated with the same degree of rigour as any senior appointment. The board needs to be very clear about what they are expecting of the non-executive and what skills the person appointed should have to complement those already on the board.

Recruiting non-executives from outside the usual suspects has been shown to add real value to a board. Derek Higgs was clear about the
importance of diversity when appointing non-executives and this is something we support wholeheartedly, which is why we do not charge companies to advertise their roles to our members.

Lesley Stephenson
Editor, The Non-Executive
Director, www.non-execs.com