Board Stories: How CEOs Built Their Boards
David Klein
CEO
CLICK THERAPEUTICS INC. is an innovator in digital therapeutics, delivering safe and effective software-based treatments to patients in need. Below, CEO David Klein shares the experience of adding an independent director to the Click board.
What spurred you to add your first independent director to your board?
The board and investors were united in the decision to create a balanced and independent board. We knew it would greatly benefit our work and mission to have different perspectives, backgrounds, and expertise weighing in on how we operate and grow.
What were you looking to bring to the board with the appointment of an independent?
We already had many different core competencies on our board but realized that we were lacking expertise on the communications and marketing side of things. So, we focused our efforts on bringing someone onto the board with the expertise, talent, and insight to advance our strategy around how we communicate and market to all stakeholders both internally and externally.
“Independent directors bring in fresh ideas, views, and strategies.”
How did you find your first independent?
Lez was referred to us by another director on our board. We heard great things about her and her work and that certainly came through in the competitive and rigorous selection process. The entire board was thrilled about the prospect of bringing Lez on and we’re fortunate to have her leadership and independent viewpoint.
What value do independent directors bring to your board?
Independent directors bring in fresh ideas, views, and strategies. And that has tremendously benefited the way we approach branding and communications. Lez’s presence on the board has been immediate and impactful. She became part of Click Therapeutics at the right time and has moved the company forward as the industry continues to evolve.
How do you think about diversity when it comes to the boardroom?
Since its founding in 2012, Click Therapeutics has remained determined to ensure a diverse and passionate workforce. The value of having a team made up of individuals with different backgrounds and perspectives that bring new ways of thinking to the table is vitally important to the success of Click. We utilize inclusive hiring processes, benefits, and career development opportunities. It’s critical for us to reflect the diversity of our employees and their experiences in our leadership and the board.
Is there anything that you learned through the process of building your board that you wish you’d known sooner?
The more enthusiastic and engaged the board is about the company’s mission, the better that company will do.
What advice might you give other CEOs about building their boards?
Your board can all be dedicated to the work and the mission, but it’s invaluable for them to bring different strengths to the table. That can make all the difference in how the organization successfully grows, adapts, and evolves.
Sami Inkinen
CEO & Founder
VIRTA HEALTH is the leader in type 2 diabetes reversal and is creating a new standard in medical care for people living with type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, or obesity. Below, founder and CEO Sami Inkinen shares how he built the Virta Health board which includes four independent directors.
How do you think about diversity when it comes to the boardroom?
It’s obvious that diverse backgrounds and diverse lived experiences improve decision making. Virta’s mission is to reverse diabetes in 100M people, and with a goal this ambitious, diversity must be a cornerstone of our approach. To build a great business we have to understand and identify with the people we serve, and we view all of our employees through this lens, from day-to-day employees and execs to the board.
We’ve always tried to find the best possible candidate for each role and emphasized unique experiences whether based on industry, educational background, stage of company growth, or overcoming complex personal or business challenges. We prioritize and value diversity not just because it makes us more effective as a company, but because we believe it's the right thing to do.
What advice might you give other CEOs about building their boards?
When building a board you’ve got a somewhat rare opportunity to pick your own boss. Choose people you trust, respect and can look to for support and guidance. These will and should be close relationships so ensuring you can work together on a deeper level is key.
If you only think of a board’s role as “governance” for a private growth company, you’re missing out. Your board can accelerate your company’s success!
“Your board can accelerate your company’s success!”
What spurred you to add your first independent director to your board?
Private company board members typically bring three things: expertise/advice, governance, and/or capital. VC board members often bring all three at once. My goal in adding independent directors was to unbundle these three capabilities and bring in specific expertise/advice that is needed to build a successful business. [When we added our first independent directors] in 2017, I wanted both clinical and healthcare expertise and scaling tech company expertise.
What value do independent directors bring to your board?
We are grateful to have four independent directors today – two women and two men – all of whom bring their own specific expertise and experience to building Virta. On a high level, these independent directors can “identify the unknowns” for our operating executives and me as a CEO. In other words, since they have broad experience and don’t live inside our fish bowl, they can point to potential current or future issues that we are not aware of (yet).
Not only that, independent directors also provide novel solutions by helping us understand how different companies have resolved similar issues. They’re great sounding boards and pressure testers for nascent ideas, and they also funnel great talent into our organization from their broad networks.
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