Chair's Mentoring Program 2026

The Chair’s Mentoring Program is the AICD’s flagship board diversity initiative, which pairs qualified, experienced women directors with leading ASX 200 company Chairs and non-executive directors for one-on-one mentoring and professional development. 
  

Mentees will advance their governance knowledge, establish their unique value proposition, gain unique boardroom insights and extend their professional director networks.

No, the purpose of the program is not to attain board appointments through mentoring. Although it is hoped that the program will help mentees achieve board appointments, this is neither the role of, nor within the control of, either the mentor or the AICD. 

• Rather, the program is designed to prepare mentees for the next steps in their director journey by:    
• Building knowledge and skills to support the transition from executive to non-executive director;    
• Providing insights into their unique value proposition for boards;    
• Providing advice and guidance on the process of selecting and appointing board directors; and    
• Facilitating connections with influential business leaders to broaden their professional networks.

Note: Mentors are not obligated nor encouraged by the AICD to act as Sponsors. 

There is no participation or application fee for the Chair’s Mentoring Program. Mentors agree to participate in the program on a voluntary basis. 

No, the Chair's Mentoring Program is currently only for women. The AICD is currently in the process of scoping other mentoring programs.

Because the aim of the program is to increase the representation of women on the boards of Australian companies.

In 2015, the AICD called for ASX 200 companies to achieve 30% of women on boards by the end of 2018. As at 30 June 2025, women comprised 39.3% of ASX 100 directors and 38.1% of directors on ASX 200 boards. The AICD intends to continue advocating for sustained gender parity on Australian boards. This program forms part of AICD’s efforts to continue encouraging all Australian companies to achieve gender representation on their boards. 

Please refer to the eligibility and selection criteria outlined on this page. You must also agree to the AICD’s Terms and Conditions before your application will be considered for the program. 


If you have any further questions, our program team is happy to assist. Send us an email.

No, the program is only open to AICD members. If you’re not a member, you can join today.

Connecting you with the world’s largest director community, AICD membership gives you priority access to events, education and resources to help you shape the future of governance in Australia.

Education and Experience 

• Outline your education history, including the program name, delivery institution, and year of completion. 
• Please describe up to three (3) of your most recent board experiences. 


Leadership Experience 

• Please describe up to three (3) of your most recent leadership roles. 
• Outline any other relevant experiences and achievements (including awards). 

Objectives 

• Outline why you have applied for the Chair’s Mentoring Program and how you hope to benefit.
• Are there particular topics or skills you wish to develop during the program?
• Have you experienced any barriers to advancing your board career that you believe the Chair’s Mentoring Program could assist with?

Mentor-based questions 

• What are you looking for from a mentor?
• Which industry would you prefer your mentor to have experience in?
• Would you prefer a mentor in your home State or Territory?

Director CV and video pitch attachments  

• A video pitch (also known as a one-sided video interview) is required as part of your application for the Chair’s Mentoring Program 2026.

This is designed to further clarify or highlight any part of the application form.

Suggestions for the video pitch:

• Clarify your goals for the program
• Reflect on timing and readiness for the program 
• Demonstrate alignment with the program’s purpose 


Referees 

Please provide details of two referees, including name, phone and email address. Referees will only be contacted to verify information if required.

1. Eligible applications will be assessed by a panel comprised of AICD staff and delegates from the AICD’s assessor database.
2. If you’re shortlisted, you will be contacted for a virtual interview with representatives from the program’s Search Firm Partners.
3. Based on the eligibility criteria and interview feedback, we’ll provide a shortlist of applicants to the selection committee for consideration. Each applicant category will have its own selection committee (comprising of representatives from AICD, senior ASX directors and other key stakeholders).
4. The selection committees’ decisions are final and no further review or discussion will be entered into with any applicant to the program.
5. Due to the high number of applications usually received for the program, we will not be able to provide feedback to applicants not shortlisted. Only shortlisted applicants who aren’t selected will receive feedback on their application and interview from the Search Firm Partner.
6. Successful applicants will be notified during the week commencing 23 February 2026.

The AICD will be responsible for pairing mentees with their mentors. 

These pairings are based on each party’s responses to a series of questions (including sector experience) during the mentor selection and mentee application stage.

Once the mentor/mentee matching process has been completed, and it is confirmed by both parties that there are no conflicts of interest, mentors are introduced to their mentees, and both are responsible for scheduling their monthly mentoring meetings throughout the year.

In most instances, mentors prefer that their mentee lives in the same state or territory. An exception may be made at the mentor’s discretion. In these cases, preference will be given to mentees from without a mentor available in their state or territory.

When pairing mentees with suitable mentors, we will take into account any preferences included in your application. However, there is no guarantee that all requests will be met. Any professional conflict of interest and mentor preferences will be taken into account.

We anticipate between 40 and 50 mentee/mentor pairs for the 2026 program, however, we won’t know final numbers until applications are finalised.

Yes, we will publish the mentees’ names and short career bios on our website. You can see previous mentees here:

• 2022 
• 2025
  

The program will officially kick off with a launch and networking event in April 2026 in Sydney. There will also be a mentee Masterclass for each of the two applicant categories.

Mentees are required to attend the launch event and their assigned Masterclass. Flights and accommodation will be reimbursed for mentees who live outside of greater Sydney regions.* (Additional expenses, such as food and taxi costs, will not be covered. We will be in touch with mentees to confirm travel requirements and logistics.)

*Terms and conditions apply 

• Launch dinner
• Masterclass
• Round table lunches
• Boardroom persona workshop
• Closing dinner

Mentees will get a schedule before the start of the program.