At a time when the world was celebrating International Women’s Day, County Down mother Carla Shields was busy plotting the next step in both her professional career and personal life.
At the International Women’s Day event Carla met a colleague who was taking part in the Boardroom Apprentice programme.
“They spoke so highly of the programme, the training and the overall experience and I wanted to find out more. When applications opened for the new intake I knew I had to seize the opportunity to apply”.
Although sitting on a board was always something that appealed to Carla, it was something that seemed out of reach.
“I think my perception of board members was that you had to be highly accomplished in your career or have a certain number of years’ experience in order to be considered for a board position,
With no expectations of what the 12-month long board training and learning programme would be like, Carla submitted her application which she believed was packed with her core values and beliefs.
“The application process really gets to the heart of ‘why ’you want to be a board member and why you would like to be a member of your selected board“For me, I really wanted to be a member of Southern Regional College. I’m a huge advocate for lifelong learning and different pathways within education. I was really aligned to the mission and vision of the organisation and this is very important when you’re considering which board to apply for..b being on a board is your opportunity to give back and use your knowledge, skills and lived experience to really help that organisation to achieve their objectives” she explained.
Founded by Eileen Mullan in 2017, the Boardroom Apprentice is a unique board learning, development and placement programme which aims to bridge the gap between aspiration and reality for those who wish to serve on boards in the Public and Third Sectors.
Each training day throughout the year is carefully planned out to transform each candidate into well-rounded individuals with all the necessary skills, confidence and mindset that will enable them to go forward for Board positions once they complete the programme.
With training on topics such as governance, marketing and finance, Carla was not only able to enhance her skills, but her confidence levels too.“The Boardroom Apprentice gave me the opportunity to gain insight into areas that maybe weren’t in my day-to-day job, such as the training that focused on finance. The practical board experience enables you to gain other valuable skills such as active listening and decision making.
“My confidence grew immensely which has benefited me personally and professionally. I am now comfortable sitting around a table with highly experienced people from different industries, different sectors, people with so many different lived experiences and confidently sharing my input.
As a result, Carla went on to take a ‘leap’ in her career and shortly after the programme she moved position from the public sector to the private sector and took on a new challenge, which she thinks is very much down to the Boardroom Apprentice programme.
‘The Boardroom Apprentice experience helped push me out of my comfort zone and was definitely a catalyst in helping me take a career jump’
Synonymous with the training, each candidate has to also complete a boardroom placement on a board of their choice, picked by Eileen herself who aims to match each person with a board that aligns with their values.
Carla sat on the board at Southern Regional College (SRC), an experience she found was both worthwhile and welcoming.
“I sat on the governing body, the audit and risk committee, the education committee and the staffing committee,
“I was so fortunate that SRC were hugely supportive of the programme and what it was trying to achieve. They did everything in their power to ensure that I felt at ease within the board setting, to explain everything and to answer any queries I had.
“I automatically felt that I was in a very supportive environment and anytime that I did participate in the conversation and contributed to the decision making, I was assured that my contribution was valued,” she said.
Reflecting on her time, Carla believes that the programme is pioneering change in boardrooms across the country. ‘It’s amazing to see the success of the programme, evidenced by number of people that have now secured a board position
Since participating in the programme, Carla is now a serving board member for Southern Regional College.
As part of Eileen’s mission, she believes that boardrooms should be more diverse and reflect the differing perspectives in society today, something that Carla is herself aligned with.
“The programme gives the opportunity to different boards to take someone in who may be different to the typical make-up of the board. Diversity is hugely important within a board ,in order to best serve an organisation, that board needs to be representative of the society which it serves” she explained.
For those considering applying to the 2022 edition of Boardroom Apprentice, Carla’s message is simple – ‘just do it’.
“I would encourage anyone to seize the opportunity. This is an amazing experience to not only get that practical experience and insight to what sitting on a board entails but also the guidance and support provided by Eillen and your other peers with the programme are
Applications for Boardroom Apprentice are open until May 24, 2022.