What makes a good NHS non-executive director?

Today, the role requires a new breed of applicants with different and complementary skills. So what are the factors that go into creating a good non-executive director?

Critical qualities

• Non-executive directors must have a clear understanding of their role and how they can most effectively serve their trust.
• They must ensure the trust is governed properly: that it complies with the right laws and regulations, that its strategies are robust, its business plans achieved and that stakeholder and patient interests are protected.
• Non-executive directors must be independent minded, have integrity and gain the respect of other board members. Despite their personal liability, they need to step back from the detail (having satisfied themselves that there is a robust management, information flow and performance management structure in place at executive level) and be prepared to look at the trust’s business from a “big picture” perspective.
• Time is an important factor. At present, non-executive directors work two and a half days a month, which is generally considered to be too little time, especially as to be effective they must take the initiative and become well informed on a whole range of subjects. 
• Non-executives also need the ability to wade through papers and other statistics and elicit the knowledge they need to perform their role effectively without being overwhelmed by detail. In fact, detail is often the enemy of the non-executive director.
• Chemistry with fellow board members is also vital. That does not mean bending over backwards so everyone gets along but rather conducting themselves in a mature and professional manner and being prepared to monitor the activities of the trust and challenge the performance of the organisation and its executive.
• Non-executive directors should keep in touch with fellow non-executive directors to share best practice between meetings, as well as immerse themselves in the trust’s business in the early days, asking lots of questions before forming opinions. 
• Assertive judgements or challenges based on ignorance or misinformation will not enhance the image of a non-executive director and only damage their credibility.
• In terms of the board and particularly the executive team, the role of a non-executive director is to offer advice, challenge and apply sound governance. The challenge is to do that as part of the team rather than appear as someone standing outside and criticising without an appreciation of the tough job the executive team has to do. The executive team must also be open and keen to take on board advice from non-executive directors.
• The best non-executive directors are those with strong influencing skills, good powers of judgement, insight and vision, and good listening skills. It is also important to be committed and enthusiastic about the trust and to inspire confidence. Showing that you are level headed will help boost credibility and respect.
• Good training is important in developing non-executive directors. Although there is now a training programme in place, it needs to go further and involve personal development plans. This will help to identify each member’s particular skills, how they can be used and developed and which skills are missing across the board.

Benefits of the job

Having said all that, who would wish to be a non-executive director?

Time served as a non-executive director communicates that you have vision, strategic ability and broad management capabilities.

Becoming a non-executive director also represents a major opportunity for personal and professional development, allowing you to broaden your skills and experience by confronting new challenges. Although the time commitment usually extends far beyond the two and a half days referred to above and the pay is not particularly attractive, it offers a chance to give something back to the community.