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Job Title: Professional Corporate Director
Type of Company: I am self-employed and act as a director for four public and two private companies.
Education: BA, Economics •• BBA, Accounting
Previous Experience: I worked as a CPA and auditor for seven years at a major international accounting firm then spent 20 years as CFO, COO and CEO of three different technology companies, two of which were publicly traded. For the past 6 years, I've served on the boards of directors of nine different companies.
Job Tasks: I have a unique job that is only possible after a long career amassing the sort of business experience that medium-sized companies look for in their board members. I chose this career path in 2003 after Congress enacted reforms to corporate governance laws with the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley bill. That legislation led to a re-configuration of the boards of most publicly-traded companies, requiring them to have at least one director who is a "financial expert".
I have spent the last 6 years serving on 9 corporate boards. All of them have either been medium-sized software/technology companies or emerging growth companies. I do not work a typical 40 hour week. My job consists of attending board and committee meetings and conference calls and in getting prepared for those meetings. I also regularly meet with and speak to the companies' executives to work on business strategies and corporate governance issues. I also need to continually stay "current" on accounting, legal and governance regulations via participation in professional director's organizations and other relevant publications from legal and accounting experts and firms.
I thoroughly enjoy what I do. I have the opportunity to get involved with many different types of businesses and people and get to work on exciting business problems and projects including mergers and acquisitions, investigations and important committee work. I typically serve as the Chairman of the Audit Committee for the boards I serve. This provides me with an additional responsibility and requires quite a bit of additional time and effort.
Best and Worst Parts of the Job: The best part of what I do is the variety of people and business problems I get to work on.
The worst part of the job is the lack of continuous control in implementing solutions and strategies...that is the responsibility of management.
Job Tips: As indicated, this is not a job that one can pursue through ordinary channels. You have to have had a career as an executive and encountered many different business issues and problems. It is also important to have a "network" of contacts who can provide assistance in problem solution or business introductions when necessary.
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