Board development focused on the right Board composition to meet a company’s future requirements is critical to strategic corporate growth and becomes an enduring source of competitive advantage. The objective of Levin & Company’s Board Director recruiting process is to identify, attract and evaluate outstanding Board Director candidates who have the right combination of skills and experience to contribute valuable expertise to our clients and assist in enhancing shareholder value.

At Levin & Company, we strive to exceed our clients’ expectations. Our attention to detail, responsiveness, comprehensive screening process, insightful evaluations, and continued assistance from inception to completion reflect our philosophy of premium service. Our seasoned, senior engagement consultants personally handle every aspect of the process through completion with professional excellence in service and results.

In our Board Director recruitment assignments, we adopt a proven systematic process and a consultative approach, which includes the following steps:

Board Composition Assessment

Our Board Director recruitment process begins with a systematic assessment of the current Board composition as it relates to the company’s future goals and challenges. Our consultants first assess the composition of the current Board and its committees, which includes interviews with key members of the Board and senior management to determine current Board Director competencies, experience and diversity and future needs.  Building a world-class Board means looking at the company’s short and long-term strategy, goals, and challenges, and deciding the following: What will the Board and company need to accomplish over the next several years and what complement of skills will be required in individual Board Directors for the Board as a whole to succeed in its mission. This analysis enables us to identify any gaps in the portfolio of skills and experience needed to optimize the Board as a strategic asset to the company and becomes an important longer-term, succession planning tool for the Board.

Targeted Board Director Profile

We then meet with the client to fully discuss the results of the Board composition assessment and its impact on the Board Director recruitment assignment. We also probe deeper about the company and its business, the Board’s interactive style and culture, and the qualities desired in the candidate. In this way, we develop a full understanding of the client’s organization and culture, Board dynamics, and the specific requirements and objectives for the Board Director recruitment engagement. We want to better understand the type of candidate who will best fit the personality and culture of the company and Board. This discussion leads to a clearly defined, comprehensive, written specification and profile of the company and the desired Board Director candidate’s characteristics, competencies, and experience.

Research Resources

Once we have established the criteria for candidate selection, we compile and prioritize a unique panel of meticulously screened prospective candidates who most closely match the approved Board Director profile. Our research and network capabilities encompass our own extensive proprietary real-time database, industry specific knowledge, breadth of experience and exceptional standards, well-established network of personal contacts, and our knowledgeable research team who continuously monitors the career and Board activities of senior executives. Our consultants have vast personal relationships with Board Directors and work collaboratively with our research team. The screening process is comprehensive with consideration given to such important criteria as time constraints, candidate’s interests/passion, personality/fit, perceived conflicts, etc. Numerous candidates will be screened with perhaps a dozen candidates surviving this process.

Candidate Evaluation

Only the specific senior engagement consultants contact the candidates to describe the client and the Board opportunity. This encourages a highly professional dialogue and valuable insight which greatly increases the success of the recruiting effort. We conduct intensive interviews with the selected candidates focusing on specific competencies, Board experience and knowledge, personality and interactive style, and the level of interest and ability to contribute value as a Board Director. As a result, our consultants get to know the candidates well. Our experience and expertise in the techniques of in-depth interviews enables us to objectively assess each candidate to determine “fit” with the client’s precise criteria. We present each candidate to the client for preliminary evaluation, arrange interviews, coordinate travel schedules, and follow-up with candidates after each visit or call to determine level of interest. Communications with the client and the candidates during all phases of this process are maintained in such a manner as to respect both the confidentiality and sensitivity of the recruitment engagement.

References

References for the finalist candidate(s) are investigated thoroughly and presented in writing to the client. These references are external validations about the candidate and can also shed light on the candidate’s engagement and interactive style to better determine “fit” within the client’s Board dynamics and culture.

Follow-up and Mentorship

Corporate Governance Practice
Board Consulting and Corporate Governance Services
Board and Director Assessment Process