How to Become a Board Member with Diana McKenzie, previous CIO, Workday and Yousuf Khan, Partner, Ridge Ventures

Diana McKenzie, four time board member and previous CIO at Workday and Yousuf Khan, Partner at Ridge Ventures, discuss what board members do, the value of a CIO on a board and how to get a board seat.

Key Takeaways

• CIOs provide a unique and invaluable perspective for boards.
  
• CIOs need to be bold and seek out board seat opportunities.
  
• Manage your board portfolio in a realistic and exciting way that makes you excited to get to work.

Key Quotes

“As a CIO, we see everything. We are the people that are between the people trying to do their job and their ability to get their job done. We see everything from a change management perspective, which gives us an awful lot of experience to then weigh in at the board.” – Diana

“To be a good board member, you have to be a good listener.” – Yousuf

“Regardless of the type of board you’re on there’s an element of humility and what they want is not only where have you seen things that have worked, but where have you seen things that haven’t worked.” – Diana

“The best board members are the ones who don’t just listen and provide advice. They are the ones who can actually follow up and actually get things done.” – Yousuf

Links

Diana McKenzie LinkedIn

Yousuf Khan LinkedIn

Workday

Ridge Ventures

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