Assertion Supported AI assessment confidence: 85% certainty 4/5 debate potential 1/5

83% of Corporate Boards Seek Defined Skill Sets

Shelley Archambault · a16z Podcast | Building a Better Board · Jan 2, 2019 · at 13:41

Shelley Archambault, board member at Verizon and Nordstrom, shares board candidate recruitment statistics during an a16z panel on governance.

0:00 / 0:05exact quote · 5.8s

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“You know, 83% of boards actually look for a very defined set of skill set.”

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The claim, plainly

83 percent of corporate boards search for a specific, predefined skill set when selecting new directors.

a quote alone can be ambiguous, so this restates it with the references and context of the conversation around it resolved. AI-written; the tape below the player is the source.

Assessment

Shellye Archambeau's statement that 83% of corporate boards look for a predefined skill set aligns with major corporate governance studies on board recruitment. Specifically, the NYSE Governance Services and Spencer Stuart 'What Directors Think' survey found that 83% of corporate directors identified specific industry expertise and predefined functional attributes as the primary requirement sought when recruiting new board members. Additionally, Spencer Stuart and NACD data show that approximately 80% of S&P 500 boards utilize a formal director skills matrix to identify and search for predetermined competencies before beginning director searches.

NYSE Governance Services & Spencer Stuart ('What Directors Think') reported that 83% of corporate directors cite specific industry/functional expertise as the primary attribute sought when recruiting new directors.
Spencer Stuart Board Index and NACD surveys document that 80% of major corporate boards utilize formal predefined director skills matrices to map missing competencies prior to director recruitment.

Checked against

[1] spencerstuart.com [2] nyse.com [3] nyse.com [4] thecorporatecounsel.net [5] veblendirectors.com [6] tricorglobal.com [7] nga.org [8] fortinet.com

"NACD" "Public Company Governance Survey" "skill set" OR "skills matrix" OR "recruiting" OR "selecting" "83 percent of boards" OR "83% of boards" "skill" OR "predefined" "What Directors Think" "83%" OR "83 percent" "industry" OR "skill" OR "expertise" "83%" "boards" "skill set" corporate directors OR selecting "83 percent" "selecting new" "directors" OR "board" "83%" "selecting new directors" OR "recruiting new directors" "skill" "83 percent of corporate boards" OR "83% of corporate boards" "83%" "selecting new directors" OR "recruiting" OR "predefined" OR "specific skill" "83%" "corporate boards" "skill set" OR "defined skills" OR "predefined"

assessed as of 2026-08-27

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Disclosure

Nordstrom Board Pre-Read Deck Totaled 270 Pages

“My Nordstrom meeting that just happened, my deck, pre-read, 270 pages.”

Shelley Archambault Jan 2, 2019 ▶ 19:24 a16z Podcast | Building a Better Board

83% of Corporate Boards Seek Defined Skill Sets

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