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The second of two training places preparing aspiring charity directors for life in the boardroom, is now available from the GTA University Centre and the Guernsey Community Foundation.
Earlier this year, GSPCA manager Steve Byrne was chosen to receive a place on the GTA’s Institute of Directors (IoD) Introductory Certificate in Board Readiness programme. Now, aspiring directors of local charities, or new directors who could benefit from formal training, have a chance to apply for their free place and will be selected by the Community Foundation, according to their experience and how much the training would benefit their organisation. Mr Byrne said the experience was invaluable.
‘Many of us attend meetings and have to make decisions for the charities or organisations we are involved with, and this course truly helps to identify and draw on your own skills and thought processes to ensure we all look at our focus and re-evaluate the organisation from time to time,’ he said.
‘It has certainly helped with preparing notes for meetings and looking at topics to cover. It’s also helping with the five-year strategy we are currently working on.’
The programme starts with a two-day workshop which will bring to life key issues that boardrooms face and provide the necessary skills, knowledge and support to be a success, driving forward the future of the business. This is followed by a one-day director mindset workshop delivered by executive coach, Chris Atkinson, designed to support the transition of delegates into the role and mindset of a boardroom director.
Mr Atkinson, who has a passion for executive team development and coaching business leaders, was formerly a vice president of Microsoft. He moved to Guernsey with his wife and four daughters in 2013 after retiring from Microsoft.
‘We recognise there is an ongoing need to support the development of local directors in the boardroom, across all industry sectors. In particular, we are keen to support organisations working in the charitable sector, who contribute enormously to the island, by providing access to quality training,’ said GTA programme manager, Michelle Morley.
Sadie Siviter de Paucar, from the Guernsey Community Foundation, added: ‘After the success of the first placement, this is another fantastic opportunity for someone else from within the charitable sector to receive top level training from experts in their field. Quite often a charity will have board members who have not had a vast amount of experience. So this offer from GTA University Centre is one that will really help the sector.’
The next IoD Introductory Certificate in Board Readiness programme runs in September.
