Rosie Bichard is a non-executive director and audit chair for UBS Asset Management in the United Kingdom. She is also a board chair at two nonprofits, including WomenExecs on Boards, the global network created to support past participants of the Women on Boards program, which she attended in 2017. Bichard later returned to Harvard Business School (HBS) Executive Education to earn the Corporate Director Certificate. Over an intensive two-week period, she completed the three required programs: Audit Committees, Compensation Committees, and Making Corporate Boards More Effective—and in the process built a tightly knit support group of allies and peers.
You first came to HBS as a participant in Women on Boards. How did that program prepare you to serve on a corporate board?
At that point in my journey, I had about 10 years of experience serving on a nonprofit board and was actively thinking about transitioning to a corporate board. During a career break, I made the decision to attend the Women on Boards program. The program was a fast-paced introduction to many aspects of board service and, most importantly, it connected me with a group of allies and peers who had common interests. This fantastic, supportive group has helped propel me into a position where I can succeed and thrive on corporate boards.
Why did you choose to come back to HBS to pursue the Corporate Director Certificate?
As an incoming audit chair at UBS Asset Management, I was especially interested in taking a deep dive into the audit committee aspects of board work, and felt that I could benefit even more from earning the Corporate Director Certificate. Many of my peers in the WomenExecs on Boards network had already completed the Corporate Director Certificate, and they highly recommended it. I also knew several of the faculty from attending the Women on Boards program, and was familiar with the HBS learning experience. So, to be honest, I couldn’t wait to return!
To earn the Corporate Director Certificate, you had to complete three programs. What impact has this learning experience had on your work with corporate boards?
Overall, the most important takeaway for me was the confidence I built by tackling complex challenges in three different areas of corporate governance. There's no one-size-fits-all solution, so you have to learn how to think strategically, develop a tool box of ideas, and have reference points for creating solutions. It's also given me an amazing global network of serving board directors that I can turn to for advice and support.
One thing that the faculty always emphasized was "the golden thread" of strategic insight: every aspect of board work ties back to company strategy, or it should.
You come to the program with your own ideas. But then you sit in the HBS classroom and listen to everyone else’s perspective, which can be very different. And suddenly, you appreciate the power of these different viewpoints. It's quite a humbling experience, as are the case studies themselves. Time and again, I read case studies about crises on boards and thought, "Goodness, the boards made so many mistakes. All of these people have incredible backgrounds, and yet they weren’t able to solve all the problems." It reminds you that board work involves some very complex challenges.
On a personal level, pursuing the HBS Corporate Director Certificate reflected my commitment to not only extend my learning, but also deepen governance excellence. My boards are really pleased that I wanted to take that on.
What surprised you most about the experience?
Several things. The Audit Committees class had a strong composition of women, which was really impressive, and not what I had expected. Secondly, there was a lot of teamwork and collaboration in a very open-minded way. We had access to a fantastic global community of diverse thought partners, including the faculty. They would say, "If you have a problem, please reach out and share. We’d love to help."
Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience?
You can pursue the Corporate Director Certificate at your own pace. I completed all three programs in two weeks because I was coming from Europe and didn’t want to have to travel several times. Doing it that way worked well for me. Plus, we had an amazing cohort that was focused on teamwork, so we developed strong bonds that continue today. And it was really fun!