Governors
The Role:
Confidential Client
The Client:
For over twenty years, Moon Executive Search has worked with a range of education establishments such as Public and Private Secondary Schools, and Further & Higher Education Colleges and Universities.
We have managed her manage senior appointments ranging across the Board, from C-suite positions, Governor appointments and senior managerial posts, we were delighted to be instructed by this major University, which has a broad spread of campuses and a strong reputation for innovation, design, and engineering. The Governing Body of the University were seeking to appoint three new Governors, ideally with backgrounds within estates, property, professional services or media, technology, and digital services.
The University was seeking candidates who would be interested in joining the University’s Board of Governors and/or Board Committees, who brought experience of leadership and governance in large, complex organisations. They were keen to speak to those candidates who could evidence a wide range of skills and expertise which could add value as well as those who could help develop the University’s distinctive strengths, uphold their mission and values, and successfully tackle any future challenges and opportunities.
Therefore, this was an exciting opportunity to make a significant contribution to the future direction of University at a pivotal time in their development.
The Challenge
Moon Executive Search were looking to source high calibre individuals who could contribute to the University’s strategic direction, management and financial governance to ensure they were able to support the students throughout their academic life and beyond.
These Governor appointments were high-profile roles which would contribute to the dynamic, developing and growing environment of the University. So ideally, we were seeking candidates who would be able to demonstrate excellent leadership and interpersonal skills with experience in the private or public sectors, alongside an interest in, and good understanding of, Higher Education and the principles of good corporate governance.
Finally, we aimed to introduce candidates with a well-established network who could evidence great commercial awareness, effective decision-making and strategic overview, with an ability to develop future opportunities for the University.
The HR Director said ‘We were looking for outstanding individuals with NED and/or executive-level business development and financial management experience to join our Board of Governors and support the institution in delivery of our strategy. We were looking to complement the skills mix within our existing Governors and therefore the importance of Board diversity was emphasised in the brief. Moon Executive Search listened closely to our requirements and delivered several individuals with great potential. We found communication to be clear and timely throughout the process, with candidates being well briefed and engaged in the application.’
Simon said ‘I was so impressed with the calibre of applicants and the interest shown in the University. It was great to work on such a complex and diverse campaign, one where we used our wide networks, reaching out into all areas of business, commerce, and community. For me, candidates had to demonstrate in our interview that they not only brought a passion for education but also a keen awareness of the University, its’ growth plans, ambitions and aspirations.’
Moon Executive Search were pleased to present a very broad ranging shortlist covering the particular areas of interest, and as a result, we successfully brought in one Governor from a property consultancy, one Governor who was previously the CEO of a Listed PLC and one Governor who runs a digital and marketing agency. All three Governors were appointed for a fixed term of 3 years, with the option to serve for a further term.
The Chair of the Board worked with Vanessa Moon Founding Director and Simon Quinn Director of Executive Search who both jointly led on this campaign for Moon and said,
‘Working with Vanessa and Simon has been a fantastic experience and one that I would definitely recommend to others, as it is a true partnership. Simon participated in the selection day as well as being an active member of the interview panel. The search campaign support we had was far reaching across England and the candidates offered to us were of a high calibre. We were very pleased with the successful result.’
Our Offering
When considering the target areas for our proactive work that would be relevant for this education group, we utilised our extensive network of Property Lawyers, Architects, Professional Advisors and experts in digital technology and marketing, making sure the opportunity was broadcast as widely as possible.
We met with the University Pane to establish an effective communication plan, which detailed all the important dates. Upon instruction, we were then able to quickly identify a long list of candidates and assess them against the University’s criteria using competency-based questions.
All candidates who requested further information, were provided with a Candidate Briefing Recruitment Pack which included an introductory message from the Vice-Chancellor University background documents, the Governor role profile and person specification, the recruitment timetable, and the details on how to make a formal expression of interest.
The process then had to include various stages with the University, including assessment stages, panel sessions, presentation topics, a tour of the University and key meetings with the Vice-Chancellor, Governing Body, Clerk to the Council and Committee members, as well as current students and faculty members.
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