Enter the Boardroom

Tom Toumazis spent 8 years as EVP and Managing Director of Disney-ABC-ESPN in EMEA. Since stepping off the executive track a decade ago he has built a portfolio career which includes SID at PRS for Music, NED at Directors UK and Deputy Chair of the University of Westminster amongst others. Interested in what it takes to build a portfolio career? Tune in to hear about: How investing his own money became Tom's way into his first board seats (01:35) His rule for the money he put behind those first bets (05:20) What Tom didn't anticipate about small-table board life (07:51) How he figures out what he's actually bringing to a board beyond money (10:11) What nobody tells you about explaining a portfolio career at a dinner party (11:26) How Tom got his first board seat, and the mistake he admits he made once he had it (12:58) Do you need a stellar career to sit on a board? (15:48) Getting a board role is a numbers game (22:05) Tom’s tips for board interviews (26:28) An easy way to enhance your networking strategy (29:39) Enter the Boardroom Community Q&A (32:42) ⚡The Lightning Round⚡(34:51)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: podcast@nurole.com
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Dame Anne Richards is Chair of Coutts, NED at Land Securities and Chair of TheCityUK Leadership Council. Previously, she was CEO of Fidelity International. Listen to this episode to find out more about: The three boardroom experiences that shaped Dame Anne Richards (01:57) The afternoon the entire board resigned (06:01) Why trust matters more than governance processes (14:38) Why boards should think of their CEO like a battery, and how to recharge them (17:00) How boards can kill good ideas without realising it (18:45) The puddle and stream problem every CEO faces (21:48) Why board agreement doesn’t mean board commitment (24:07) The unexpected risks of planned CEO successions (25:02) The chair's balancing act during a CEO handover(26:29) ⚡The Lightning Round⚡(28:57) Audience Q&A (34:05)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: podcast@nurole.com
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Why becoming a NED made Gavin a better CEO (01:33) The advice Gavin would give himself  looking back (09:12) How to unlock the high-flying CEO who always thinks they’re right (14:34) The two warnings Gavin ignored before BT fell apart (18:27) The truth about his departure from BT (21:46) Why Gavin doesn’t agree with ‘I’ll back you ‘till I sack you’ (26:41) What everyone could learn from PE firms about senior appointments (30:29) Gavin’s advice on firing a CEO (34:21) ⚡The Lightning Round⚡(36:11) Enter the Boardroom Community questions (40:47)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: podcast@nurole.com
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Ian Filby spent almost 30 years at Alliance Boots before becoming CEO of DFS. He then served as Chair at Joules and Pendragon, where he navigated activist shareholder pressure. Listen to this episode to learn about: What private equity taught Ian about how boards should behave (01:34) The danger of drifting from data to anecdote (05:36) The KPI mistake that leaves boards blind to the future (08:04) Why Ian had an operating board and a strategy board (10:36)  The warning signs your bank may not back you when it matters (17:20) The private equity lesson every PLC board should steal (19:33) How Ian handled an activist investor, a blocked takeover and a boardroom revolt (23:14) Why Ian stepped down as chair (29:02) How to handle activist-investors (30:05)⚡The Lightning Round⚡(34:26)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: podcast@nurole.com
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Celia Huber is a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company and leads McKinsey's boards services work in North America. Celia also serves on the executive committee of the California Business Roundtable, is a board member of AMN Healthcare and is a trustee of the AltaMed Foundation. Tune into this episode to learn about: The two questions that reveal where your board really stands on AI (01:27) The stat that shows how far behind most boards are on AI governance (09:00) Business pioneer, pragmatic adopter, internal transformer or functional reinventor: which AI archetype are you? (10:42) The five value levers that reveal where your AI opportunity actually is (16:13)  How McKinsey builds its own AI tools instead of just relying on existing ones (23:45) How boards are using AI in the boardroom (26:30) Transparency, access, and risk: the three things boards get wrong about AI guardrails (30:50) The six-month AI learning journey every board should design (36:20) The one change Celia would make to improve any board by 20% in a year (38:08) ⚡The Lightning Round⚡(41:37)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: podcast@nurole.com
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom