Appointing the right people to the Board with the necessary skills, experience in the sectors and capability has never been more important, writes Barry Codling, President, PIAA.

The current PIAA Board recognises that to better serve the interests of our members, they must move to appoint individuals to the Board who can understand issues at both the detailed and ‘big-picture’ level.

Board composition is a broad term that encompasses issues such as who is on the Board and the skills mix of the Board. It involves both structural and cultural issues and board effectiveness depends on obtaining the right mix of skills and experience. This is something we have lacked in the past without the ability to select board members based on a skills matrix and sound experience of the industry and something of which we wish to address with future board selection.

Stable boards with long-serving, committed members will have an advantage of a thorough knowledge of the organisation and its current mission. However, it is important that the board represents and reflects the interests of its members by having a broad range of skills to drive the Association into the future. Selecting new directors to build a Board that is right for the Association has not been a simple task in the past.

Director selection encompasses:

  • Alignment of skills with strategic direction;
  • Cultural fit with the Board;
  • Time it will take to be an effective contributor; and
  • Succession planning.

Building the right Board requires an understanding of director competencies, which involves consideration of the directors’ experience, skills, attributes, and capabilities.

At PIAA, director appointment and re-appointment will be determined by an ad hoc Nominations Committee of four Board members, comprising the Chair of the Board (who will chair the committee), the Deputy Chair of the Board and two other Directors (excluding any Directors being considered for re-appointment).

The sector working groups, which will comprise members from each sector, will meet and discuss the needs and challenges facing their part of the industry. The chair of each working group will report to the Board and work with the Directors to support our members and drive change.

This article was written by Barry Codling, President, PIAA for the August issue of Pet Industry News magazine.

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