The 2025 FAICDLife awardees share hard-earned lessons for emerging and established directors.
AICD Life Fellows carry the honorary post-nominal FAICDLife and are nominated for their outstanding work and contribution to governance over long periods of time. FAICDLife awardees are some of the most accomplished directors in Australia.
The eight Life Fellows for 2025 were announced at the Australian Governance Summit in March. These experienced directors offer advice on what it takes to build a successful board career. From joining your first board to staying ahead of evolving risks, they offer candid insights on influence, trust and lifelong learning. Whether you’re just starting out or refining your approach, their advice highlights the skills, mindset and strategies that define effective directorship.
Diane Kargas Bray AM FAICDLife
Shop around
Emerging directors: Don’t jump on the first board you’re offered. Have a think about your skill base. What’s your learning base? What do you need to learn? Do you think you could add value to an organisation with the skills you already have? Pick a sector or organisation in which you think you can make an actual difference to your community. Shop around and ask questions.
You can make or break the board
Established directors: Your responsibility on the board is now immense — you can make or break the board. You need to know why you’re there, read the papers and ask questions. Put your hand up and say, please explain this item. If you’re still not certain, get your own advice. My greatest joy is getting the board to think outside the box.
If we could imagine a community where everybody felt they belonged, what a different community we would have. I’m passionate about governance in improving social outcomes. Social inclusion is so important. If I can do my little bit to bring that sense of belonging to the community, I’ve done my job.
Geoffrey Brunsdon AM FAICDLife
It’s got to get you up in the morning
Emerging directors: If you’re contemplating joining a board, you need to be aligned with the company purpose. You’ve got to be passionate and it’s got to get you up in the morning. The first board you join will set the direction of your board career. Do your own due diligence. Understand the dynamic around the board table. Reflect on whether this is the right spot for you. Will it give you a sense of pride to be part of the organisation? Look at the board individually and ask, do I respect these people? Being able to reflect on circumstances and give the board the best opportunity to make good decisions is fundamental.
Be humble
Established directors: Good communication is essential. You need to have a vision, an inquiring mind, a collaborative approach and a level of humility that makes you approachable and willing to think about other perspectives as part of the decision-making process. If you’re humble, people are more likely to express their views, particularly when they might disagree with you. It enables you to be part of a team.
Jim Hazel FAICDLife
Loosen your grip
Emerging directors: Starting out, I learned about letting go of the steering wheel — that you don’t always have to be the loudest voice in the room. Learning when to contribute and when not to contribute is very important. The first thing you should do is to go into your network, tell them what you’re planning and ask if they think it sensible. Do your due diligence. It’s very flattering to be offered a board role or an opportunity to pursue one. Sometimes it’s hard to say no, but not every board role is the right opportunity. You only have one reputation.
Directorship is a profession
Established directors: I believe in the primacy of the CEO. I have always made sure that I unequivocally backed CEOs — until such time as I didn’t. I’ve always promised them that when I didn’t back them anymore that they would be the first to know.
The role of the director has become more professional. You’re required to keep current across so many different things now, that unless you treat the role as a profession, I don’t think you’ll be successful.
Tracey Horton AO FAICDLife
Add value
Emerging directors: Find a way you can contribute to the board in a way you feel comfortable. What can you provide that others can’t? I leaned on my previous executive experiences and found things I could offer that would be valuable to the organisation. You have to be clear why you want to be a director and how you’ll add value. The hallmark of a good board is where the sum of the parts is greater than the contributions each individual director can make. It’s about only speaking when you have something valuable to say.
Learn and have fun
Established directors: The overriding theme for me in building a portfolio has always been to have a variety of different types of companies. An eclectic mix keeps me interested, it’s fun, it’s enjoyable and I learn a tremendous amount. The greatest joy I get as a director is the ability to continue learning, contributing and having fun.
The role of the chair is about creating that board greater than the sum of the parts. And understanding what the triggers are that make that effective environment of trust, challenge and constructive debate.
Grant Murdoch FAICDLife
Consensus comes first
Emerging directors: Accept the principle that collective wisdom is greater than individual wisdom. That can be humbling at times. You need to be able to work with the group to achieve that consensus.
Do your due diligence on the company in terms of its financial viability and reputation, and get character references on the other directors. There’s usually quite a lot of emotion on a board, so those relationships and respect towards other directors have been critical factors for me in joining a board.
Avoid groupthink
Established directors: On a board, sometimes you’ll differ quite strongly, but you need to be respectful. You need to acknowledge the amount of emotion and intellect other directors have invested in the company. Diverse groups of people are better at solving complex problems than like-minded ones.
It is critical you continue to develop your skills because of the pace of change. If you don’t embed yourself in the various new things that are happening, you can have real difficulty in understanding how to guide management and the organisation forward.
Susan Rix AM FAICDLife
Never say you’ve learned everything
Emerging directors: It’s important you do due diligence before you go on a board. It’s important you like the subject matter and can relate to the purposes of the organisation. You can never say you’ve learned everything. Every organisation evolves and no two organisations ever have exactly the same sort of situation arise. The biggest challenge I’ve faced is when an organisation is going through a crisis. It’s important to understand and support the CEO and executive team.
Not-for-loss
Established directors: To be a successful chair, it’s important you understand what motivates your directors and how to run a good meeting. Have good papers. Value the time your directors contribute to the board meeting and have a good relationship with the CEO. It’s important for the CEO and chair to have a good working relationship to get the best out of the organisation.
The NFP sector is rewarding because it values the skillsets of its directors. I don’t like the term “not-for-profit”. I prefer the term “not-for-loss”.
Alison Watkins AM FAICDLife
Be “always on”
Emerging directors: When joining a new board, you should ask yourself, can I add value? Do I have something distinctive to complement the rest of the board? Is there a sweet spot where I can contribute? Be “always on”. The opportunity for impact as a non-executive director comes through your ability to influence and be credible with the management team and your board colleagues. That involves getting to know them, building a relationship, having conversations and asking questions offline, outside the meeting. Be attuned to the context of the organisation you’re in, the personalities, the chair, the expectations of management — which are always changing.
Board and executive must align
Established directors: You need to be aware the level of trust between board and management team has to be of the highest order. There must be complete alignment on priorities, especially when things don’t go to plan. Directors and boards need to build on the work many have done around enterprise risk management, use these frameworks to the full and think about risk appetite.
Kee Wong FAICDLife
Be curious
Emerging directors: Understand the science and the art of directorships. A good director is always curious. Be curious how the chair would conduct a board, about management and the people, as well as the business itself. It comes down to three things. Firstly, the separation of management from the board. Secondly, a good chair who understands how to orchestrate the board to get an outcome and have a healthy debate on topics. Thirdly, listening and asking questions rather than talking.
Be a visionary
Established directors: Know that innovation gives an organisation the opportunity to do things differently. A holistic director can spread beyond the centre of expertise. Be a visionary. Be able to convince people that when they go on a journey, it’s the right one to go on.
With the impact of technology, organisations need to have good strategy from a defensive perspective, but also an offensive one for competitive advantage. There are always things outside board meetings you need to make time for.
This article first appeared under the headline ‘AICD for life’ in the April 2025 issue of Company Director magazine.
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