Am I too old or too young to get a NED appointment?

Rarely are you too old or too young to be a NED, but “Am I too old or too young to get a Non-Executive Director (NED) appointment?” is one of the questions I get asked continually. It’s an important question, but focusing on your age is, I think, the wrong approach. You need to focus on three things instead: what you have to offer, which organisations you want to be appointed to, and who will value you and your skills and experience enough to appoint you.

Statistically, are you too old or young to be a NED director?

The UK government stipulates that you must be at least 16 years old to become a company director in the UK, which includes NEDs. The requirements for charitable organisations are slightly different. The minimum age for a trustee of a charitable trust or unincorporated associate is 18. Whilst 16 is the minimum age for charitable incorporated organisations or charitable companies. There are no maximum age limits.

So, officially or legally, unless you are under the age of 16  you are not too old or too young to be a non-executive director. However, the responsibilities and fiduciary duties associated with serving as a NED mean that it is extremely unlikely that a chair will approve the appointment of an extremely young person. 

The UK Spencer Stuart Board Index collects and reviews data from the top 150 UK companies – FTSE 150. The 2023 report states that the average age of new NEDs is 58.8 years old. But keep in mind these figures account for only 181 of the thousands of NEDs to be appointed across the UK in 2023. These appointments were also for the top commercial companies where you would expect the age of board members to be much older than those from organisations such as smaller public companies, not-for-profits, private companies and start-ups.

What is important are the five things chairs look for in board candidates: prior board experience, executive skills set, personal connection, passion, and cultural fit. Whilst age or maturity is not mentioned, once you have developed these skills and qualities, you are at the right age to consider a NED appointment.

Know what you offer

Focusing on the perceived, not the real, reasons you might not gain a NED role is a mistake. There may be countless reasons why you might not be suitable for a NED appointment, which will differ from organisation to organisation. 

Perhaps you:

• • appear too old or too young
  • are over-experienced or under-experienced
  • don’t have the right skill set
  • don’t have the right industry experience
  • have no commercial board experience or too much
  • currently have too many board appointments or not enough
  • have a gap in your NED CV
  • would not fit with the culture of the board or organisation

Often, many of the negative reasons you come up with may only be your perception and not a genuine reason for you not being appointed. My advice is not to focus on the negatives, such as I am too old or young, but instead focus on the positives, the true reasons why your skills and experience are valuable to the board. Study current advertisements for NEDs and pay particular attention to the selection criteria. You will notice that age and usually required years of experience are not mentioned. Start a spreadsheet listing the skills and experience that are relevant to you. This list will help you develop your board value proposition and board profile.

Finally, I recommend that you also include a column for the organisations and industries relevant to the role in your list. This will help during the next step. 

Know which organisations will value what you offer

Once you are clear on your value proposition, it is time to work out which organisations will value them and which organisations will likely dismiss them. For example, it is unlikely that a start-up run by twenty-somethings will see value in an ‘old guy/gal’ regardless of how much relevant experience you offer. Equally, a significant listed company will value the youth you offer at the expense of the length of your experience. So, which organisations will value what you offer? Answering this question will make the process (not the journey) to a board appointment much quicker and less painful. After all, constantly pursuing a board role in an organisation you are passionate about and know you can help, only to be told (or never told) that you are too young/old is a recipe for frustration and heartbreak.

Know what your board aspirations are?

I firmly believe that there is a board appointment for everyone. However, here is the tough reality. Not every organisation that you want to be appointed to is going to want to have you on their board. Working out which organisation will appoint you based on the skills and experience you offer is critically essential. Once you have, the next thing to do is work out whether that sort of organisation is one you want to be appointed to the board of. It may not always align. While disappointing, I think this can actually be a good result. After all, no one wants to spend years chasing and applying for roles only to get a  ‘thank you but no thank you’ response to your earnest approaches. Understanding what your board aspirations are and the reality of your appointment to those boards will make your life a lot easier.

In Conclusion

Boards and committees benefit from members of all ages who bring different knowledge, experiences and attitudes. So, asking, “Am I too old or too young for a NED appointment?” is, I think, always the wrong question to ask yourself. Instead, you must focus on a new question, “Which organisation will appoint me?”. Stay focused on the positive attributes you offer, not negative assumptions. In my extensive experience, I believe that there is a NED or governance role for everyone. Whether you want this sort of board appointment is another story. 

Yes, you might be considered too old or too young or have one of the other myriad of deficits that may result in you not gaining a particular NED appointment. At the end of the day, you need to allay your perceived apprehensions and focus on roles and boards that are a good fit and where you can add value. It starts by clarifying what that value is at the board level and knowing which organisations will value it. I promise that by doing this, a NED appointment will happen far more quickly than you imagine. 

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