FAQs

The Directory is open to board members and senior leaders of companies with a market cap or revenue above £100m (down to exco - 2 level where a large cap) and to partners of major professional services firms worldwide. The platform also welcomes board members and senior leaders from prominent government institutions and arts, military and not-for-profit organisations. Members without existing portfolio experience must be either currently serving or recently retired. This ensures the Directory maintains profiles relevant for the calibre of our board and private equity search partners.

Yes, each member on the Directory has a ‘comments’ section on their profile which allows them to specify their current capacity and preferred role types. We recommend updating this section regularly as your availability and role preferences evolve, ensuring headhunters have access to your current intentions. In this section members can also summarise the board and executive experience they bring, their own location and preferred location of roles, timescales and the roles they do not wish to hear about.

You will receive notifications on the platform if a headhunter has viewed your profile or opened your contact details on the Directory. You will be informed via email if a headhunter has connected with you or sent you a message. Additional visibility into headhunter interest varies by membership tier:

• The Classic tier allows you to see the anonymised notifications of any headhunters who have viewed your profile.
• The Gold tier allows you to access more detailed insights, providing information on the headhunter firms which have viewed your profile.

Absolutely. The platform is an entirely closed database where all member profiles are accessible only to verified partners from leading search and private equity firms. Members cannot view other candidate profiles, only their own. Profile visibility to headhunters is activated upon completion of payment. Members of our sister platform, The 350 Club, are eligible for free Directory membership.

Profiles that distinguish themselves typically feature succinct career histories, with a focus on the most senior and recent roles. We recommend not to disregard optional fields such as ‘personal interests’; these can often make you a more memorable candidate for board roles. Additionally, video introductions can be extremely helpful in conveying style and appointability, as can your comments on your goals and capacity, and the upload of your CV, which will AI generate an editable bio. 

If you would like additional advice on maximising visibility to search consultants, we offer premium membership tiers that provide varying levels of guidance from experienced board headhunters. This includes personalised advice on CV, presentation and profile optimisation. Please review our membership options for detailed information on available tiers and their respective benefits.

That is no problem. You can generate your editable bio by uploading your CV and then removing it again as our search partners find it very helpful to have this clear career summary.

Contact must be initiated by headhunters to maintain the integrity of the search process. However, a headhunter can send you a connection request, which allows you to send an introductory message. This protocol ensures all interactions are relevant and appropriately targeted.

Frequently. While your public company roles will update automatically, we recommend that all other information, including private company roles, contact details, personal interests and any comments on capacity and role preferences are updated quarterly or as your career evolves. A comprehensive profile means you are most likely to be found for relevant opportunities.

The Directory is searched by all the SHREK firms (Spencer Stuart, Heidrick & Struggles, Russell Reynolds, Egon Zehnder and Korn Ferry) alongside leading boutique and specialist search practices including Dr Bjorn Johansson Associates, Lygon Group, The MBS Group, Odgers, Sapphire Partners, and Teneo. It is also used by the private equity firms Advent International and Alphaskill.

No, it is also for those who are seeking leadership roles and is used by our search partners to identify both non-executive and executive candidates.

A candidate’s public company roles will be updated automatically. All other information, including personal interests, contact details, private company roles, and direct comments from members will depend on the candidate updating this information when their circumstances change. We encourage members to update their profiles when necessary, to ensure maximum visibility.

The Board Directory provides access to dynamic, user-managed profiles that deliver comprehensive insights significantly beyond traditional databases. Each profile presents the full breadth of candidate experience and skillsets, with listed board roles updating automatically as the candidate's status changes. Profiles are further enriched with indication of scale, professional video introductions and candidate commentary on their current capacity and role preferences, providing headhunters with a comprehensive insight on style, capacity, fit and preferences.

No, not even your colleagues can see your activity. Complete confidentiality is maintained through multiple privacy protocols:

• Project names are encrypted and accessible only to the given search consultant.
• Personal candidate favourites remain visible exclusively within your individual login.
• Upvoting functionality (available for Gold subscription candidates) is the one function which enables anonymous internal firm collaboration by highlighting and elevating candidates in colleagues' relevant searches.
• None of your activity is visible to competitors.

No. Candidates with basic membership can see if a search partner has viewed their profile, but not who it is or which firm. Members with premium membership can see which firm has viewed them, but not with headhunter. In neither case can they see the search which generated their profile, the project for which they may be being considered, or saved in.

The platform offers dual tracking capabilities:

• Through the private favouriting function, you may create personal candidate shortlists accessible only through your individual login.
• You may also share promising Gold subscription candidates with firm colleagues using the upvoting system. This collaborative function operates independently from private favouriting.

The Board Directory allows you to search using advanced filters including:

• Roles and qualifications
• Diversity characteristics
• Language proficiencies
• Index affiliations
• Interests and professional engagements
• Current and previous location
• Geographic experience
• Client experience
• Sector experience
• Skillset 

Multiple options are available:

• Platform messaging: Direct communication through the Directory's integrated messaging functionality
• External outreach: Access to profile contact details for communication through preferred channels, including mobile number where given
• Connect function: Initiate connections with or without accompanying messages. Once connected, candidates may initiate subsequent conversation.
• CV details, where uploaded.