Dawn Lepore, former Chair and CEO of Drugstore.com and veteran board director, shares her views on board composition and member roles during an a16z Podcast panel.
“There's no slots. Like, I don't think of slots, right? I mean, to your point, you're, you can't be a one-topic board member. That just doesn't work, and you're not contributing to the board, so I think every, Companies different, and you've probably found that with Zendesk, right? I mean, some need different skill sets, but it's not a slot for a lawyer, a slot for a technician, a slot for a marketing person. I don't think very many boards operate that way.”
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More from Dawn Lepore
Insight
Lepore: Non-profit board experience does not prepare you for corporate boards
“I hear people say, Well, I'm on lots of nonprofit boards, so therefore I can do a public or private, you know, corporate board. They're nothing like each other. Nothing at all. As far as I'm concerned, doing nonprofits, which are great things to do, that's not…”
Dawn LeporeJan 2, 2019▶ 17:30a16z Podcast | Public or Private? Finding the Right Board Seat
Insight
Lepore: Board Seats Help Functional Leaders Transition to General Executives
“One of the things that's interesting that's a theme, if you're, if you grow up in a functional area, I was CIO of Schwab, I grew up in technology, I think it's a wonderful way to broaden yourself. I mean, it's hard to break out of your functional area and beco…”
Dawn LeporeJan 2, 2019▶ 4:33a16z Podcast | Public or Private? Finding the Right Board Seat
Insight
Lepore: Aspiring public directors must get direct public board experience
“If you want to be on public boards, you need to get your first public board. Now that can be by going on a private board that goes public, but if you really want to be on public boards, Long term. At some point, you need to be on a public board, because they a…”
Dawn LeporeJan 2, 2019▶ 5:18a16z Podcast | Public or Private? Finding the Right Board Seat
Insight
Lepore: New board members should listen rather than speak
“Board meetings can go awry if somebody wants to hear themselves talk, and so you need to know that you don't always have to say something. So I think that's, and I always tell people when they're new on a board, do a lot of listening.”
Dawn LeporeJan 2, 2019▶ 12:03a16z Podcast | Public or Private? Finding the Right Board Seat
Disclosure
Lepore networked for 20 months before securing her first board seat
“I networked for about 20 months before I got my first board”
Dawn LeporeJan 2, 2019▶ 15:44a16z Podcast | Public or Private? Finding the Right Board Seat
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