Author Archives: Karen LOON

71 board appointments for INSEAD Directors Network members

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7 April 2021

Members Board & Corporate Governance Positions Announcement Q1 2021

INSEAD’s International Directors Network, IDN is proudly sharing the recent appointments up to end of February 2021 of board and corporate governance positions of our members, truly recognising our members and the strength of our IDN network.

IDN members have been appointed to 71 new board positions in 20 countries, summing up to 397 position announcements since 2017.

As a member of IDN, the network of INSEAD International Board Directors, (full membership is open to all INSEAD Alumni with appropriate directorship experience and is automatic for Certified Directors (IDP-C) from INSEAD’s International Directors Program (IDP)), you can be truly proud of your network!

You will find the IDN members with new board positions below.  Why don’t you help share our network’s achievement via Linkedin, as well as also position yourself and your membership of a vibrant network via this Linkedin post.

And take the time to connect with your fellow IDN members at LinkedIn and expand your board contacts by clicking their names below and connecting with them!

To date, IDP has been completed by 1,378 IDP and IDPB participants, with 1062 certified IDP-C/ IDBP-C directors, and our International Board Network IDN of INSEAD Alumni of 1,503 members.

IDN works closely with INSEAD Corporate Governance Centre, which undertakes cutting-edge research and teaching tailored to the needs of boards and international directors.  The Centre fosters a global dialogue on the challenges of corporate governance and leadership in an international context.

INSEAD Directors’ Network – Members New Board & Corporate Governance Positions

IDN members – Certified IDP-C Board Directors

Xavier Bedoret – November & December 2020 – Chairman of the Board of International Trade S.A. – International trade financing (Private, HQ Brussels) & Chairman of the Board of Cenergy Holdings S.A., Steel (Listed, HQ Brussels)
Sanjeesh Bera – December 2020 – Member of the Board of Directors at Teevra Edutech Pvt Ltd (Private, HQ India)
Carin Beumer – October 2020 – Board member at Mercy Corps (NGO, HQ The Netherlands)
Robert Bolier – January 2021- CEO and Board member at Sustainable Forestry Investments (SFI) BV (Private, HQ The Netherlands)
Bas Boots – December 2020 – Member of the Supervisory Board at Limgroup BV (Private, HQ The Netherlands)
Roberta Casali – May 2020 – Chairperson of Tages Capital Sgr (Private, HQ Italy)
Farid Chedid – February 2021 – Chairman and CEO at Ascoma AC (Private, HQ Monaco)
Smit Crouse – November 2020 – Non Executive Board Director at Motus Holdings Limited (Listed, HQ South Africa)
Pierre Dejoux – March 2020 – Non Executive Board Director at Energiency (Private, HQ France)
Lale Develioğlu – December 2020 – Independent Board Director at Anadolu Efes (Listed, HQ Turkey)
Magali Depras – October 2020 – Non-Executive Board Director at Chemical Industry Association of Canada (CIAC) (Not-for-profit, Ottawa, Canada)
Judith Eden – October 2020, Committee Chair at Pension Insurance Corporation (Private, HQ United Kingdom)
Fabio Mondini de Focatiis – September 2020, Board member at Barberinos (Private, HQ Italy)
Dominic Gaillard – January 2021 – Chairman (6 years) at Vontobel Asset Management AG – Group company -(Private, HQ Switzerland), Chairman (10 years) Vontobel Asset Management SA – Group company – (Private, HQ Luxembourg), Board Member at Vontobel Asset Management Pte Ltd – Group company (Private, HQ Singapore), Chairman (4 years) at Vontobel Fonds Services AG – Group Company (Private, HQ Switzerland)
Helen Gillies – January 2021 – Non Executive Director at Aurelia Metals Limited (Listed, HQ Australia)
Peter Hinder – February 2021- Chairman & CEO at Abifor AG (Private, HQ Switzerland)
Saskia Kunst – February 2021 – Chairman Supervisory Board at Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam BV (Public fund, HQ The Netherlands)
Virginie Lagrange – October 2020 –  Non Executive Director Board Member, Chairwoman of the Audit Committee, member of the Risk Committee, member of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee at Liberty Mutual Insurance Europe SE (Private, HQ Luxembourg)
Karen Loon – August 2020 & January 2021 – Chair, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, Singapore Overseas Regional Council (Professional Organisation, Singapore) & Director at INSEAD Directors Club Ltd (Private Ltd, HQ Singapore)
Dr. Lucy Surhyel Newman – July 2020 & February 2021-  Non-Executive Member of the Governing Board at Renaissance Development Forum (RDF) (NGO, HQ Nigeria) & Non Executive Member of the Governing Council at West African Thoelogical Seminary (WATS), (Private, HQ Nigeria)
Dominic Nixon – August 2020 – Director at INSEAD Directors Club Ltd (Private Ltd, HQ Singapore)
Marina Niforos – January 2021 -NED, Chair Nomination Committee, member Investment and Risk Committees, mandate renewal until 2025 at Hellenic Corporation of Assets and Participations (Private, HQ Greece)  & Advisory Board member at Sovereign Investment Fund & Urban Impact Ventures, (Private, HQ Netherlands)
Gbenga Oyebode – December 2020 – Chairman and Non-Executive Director of the Board at PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc (Public, HQ Nigeria)
Astrid Pieron – January 2021- Non-Executive Board Director at Herstal Group (Private, HQ Belgium)
Helen Pitcher OBE – February 2021 – Chairman at INSEAD Directors Club Ltd (Private Ltd, HQ Singapore)
Mary Sue Rogers – October 2020 – Non-Executive Director at Inclusiv Education Pty Ltd (HQ Australia)
Annemieke Roobeek – October 2020 – Non-Executive Board Director at ENECO (Private, HQ The Netherlands)
Raymond Schadeck – September 2020 – Chairman of the Board of Regents of Sacred Heart University (Private, HQ Luxembourg) & Chairman of Université dans la Nature – Montréal (Quebec) (Private, HQ Canada)
Christiane Schloderer – December 2020 – Chairwoman of the Board of Trustees at German International School (Non-profit, HQ Abu Dhabi, UAE)
Jeff Scott – February 2021 – Director at INSEAD Directors Club Ltd (Private Ltd, HQ Singapore)
Sophie Servaty – October 2020 – Non- Executive Board Director at Les Cliniques Universitaires de Saint Luc (Private, HQ Belgium) & Chairman of the Audit Committee at Les Cliniques Universitaires de Saint-Luc (Private, HQ Belgium)
James Singh – January 2021 – Non-executive Director at 1020 Capital; 1020 Multistrategy Fund (Private, HQ Hongkong)
Charles Spaan – September 2020 –  Member of the Advisory Board at Lender & Spender (Private, HQ Netherlands)
Nicoline Spruijt – January 2020 – Non Executive Director at Palais Coudenberg, Belgium (Not-for-Profit, HQ Belgium)
Marcia de Wachter – September 2020 – Chair of the Board of Directors of MeDirectBank  (Private, HQ Malta)
Anna Zanardi – Beaconforce Srl, Italy, Innovation Start Up (Private, HQ Italy)

Carole Wintersdorff – November 2020 – Non Executive Independent Director at AMR Action Fund GP Sarl (Unlisted, HQ Luxembourg)

IDN Members – Board Directors

Emmanuele Attout – January 2021 – Non-Executive Director at AG Insurance (Private, HQ Belgium)
Cedric Brusselmans – February 2021 – Chairman at Chapter Zero Brussels (NGO, HQ Belgium)
Thomas Burkhalter – October 2020 & January 2021- Chairman at momentumDB.pro (Private, HQ, Switzerland) & Chairman at education4future GmbH (Private, HQ, Switzerland)
David Buser – October 2020 – Board Director at Canveo Limited (Private, HQ United Kingdom)
Dr Antonio Dottore – February 2021 – Non-executive Director at CRC Longevity (CRC = Co-Operative Research Centre), (NGO, HQ Australia)
Wu Gang – October 2020 – Non-executive Director at IG Group Holdings plc (Listed, HQ United Kingdom)
Ludovic Gaude – November 2020 – Chairman at Robart (Private, HQ Austria)
Rob Goudswaard – November 2020 & January 2021 – Non Executive Director at Lawson Grains Macquarie Bank Agriculture Fund (Private, HQ Sydney Australia) & Non-executive Director at Cashrewards Ltd (Listed, Australia)
Joop Heijenrath – February 2021 – Chairman at Yource (Private, HQ Netherlands)
Grant Latimer – November 2020 – Director, Board Member at Proton Products International (Private, HQ United Kingdom)
Marco Montefiori – October 2020- Trustee Member of HR Committee, BFNY (Non for Profit, HQ United States) & Trustee Member of Finance Committee, BFNY (Non for Profit, HQ United States)
Oyekunle Osilaja – January 2020 – Non-Executive Board Director at UPDC Plc (Listed, HQ Nigeria) & January 2019 Non-Executive Director, Landmark Africa Ltd (Private, Nigeria)
Michel Rzonzef – (September 2019) – Non-executive Director at SGI (Engineering and Consulting), (Private, HQ Luxembourg)
Joshua C.K. Siow – February 2021- Independent Board Director at AEI Corporation Limited (Listed, HQ Singapore)
Jim Strang – January 2021 –  Independent Non-Executive Director at Business Growth Fund plc, Private, London, UK
Jan-Paul van Term – November 2020 – Supervisory Board Member at TAUW Group, (Private, HQ The Netherlands)
Johan Vermeiren – October 2020 – Non Executive Director at Syntegro (Private, HQ Belgium)
Frank Vogt – January 2021 – Supervisory Board Member at Dock Foundation, member Audit Committee (Public, Netherlands) & Non-Executive Board Member at Die Keure Publishing & Printing, Digital Focus (Private, Belgium)

Previous announcements and more information

Previous board position announcements by shared by IDN;
December 2020 September 2020 March 2020 October 2019 July 2019  February 2019  November 2018 July 2018 April 2018  January 2018   October 2017

For organisations interested in partnering with IDN, please contact IDN President, Helen Pitcher OBE, at [email protected]

On Behalf of the INSEAD International Directors’ Network Board,

 

 

 

 

Helen Wiseman, 
IDP-C, IDN & NAA Australia Board Member,
NED at multiple companies
www.linkedin.com/in/helenwiseman
[email protected]

For more information about :

How to become a partner of IDN, contact our President, Helen Pitcher here
INSEAD Directors’ Network, click here.
INSEAD Corporate Governance Centre here.

Follow INSEAD IDN on social media;
INSEAD IDN on LinkedIn
INSEAD IDN on Twitter

Get to know Christiane Schloderer, IDN UAE Ambassador

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Get to know Christiane Schloderer, IDN UAE Ambassador

Christiane Schloderer is our newly appointed IDN Ambassador in the United Arab Emirates.

Tell us about yourself.

My name is Christiane Schloderer. I am IDP-C 16 and very happy and honoured to join the IDN Ambassador group.

Originally from Germany, I have been based in the Middle East (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh) since 2008. I am a non-executive director to Rolaco Group in Saudi Arabia, a mid-cap family business. In December 2020, I was “promoted” to being the chairwomen of GISAD, the German International School Abu Dhabi. The transition from board member to chair is challenging but comes with great learning opportunities.

Since 2016 I run Growth Partners, consulting mid-sized & family businesses and larger startups in building scalable businesses, particularly financially – often in interim CFO roles. Governance is a large topic for most of them. Prior to that, I was CFO for Nokia’s Joint Venture in Saudi Arabia and have worked in various corporate finance roles in Nokia Networks. I hold a doctoral degree from the German Armed Forces University in innovation and change management.

Pre-kids, I enjoyed hiking, horse riding, scuba diving and travelling. These days, I spend my leisure time with my two daughters (3 and 5) on playgrounds, the pool and the beach, enjoying the wonderful winter climate in Abu Dhabi.

What are you planning to do to engage with members in your location?

I had the pleasure to connect already with a few UAE IDN members and look forward to (re-) connecting the IDN members with each other and identifying subjects of interest. I hope we can build a small group of active members to jointly organize activities.

Leveraging on the INSEAD Abu Dhabi campus would be a great opportunity to organize faculty engagements and get-togethers (Covid permitting, of course).

Family governance, startup-governance and financial service governance are certainly high up on the list of topics.

Where will you fly to when you get on a plane next (and why)?

With currently 10 days quarantine requirements when re-entering Abu Dhabi, spontaneous trips have not been possible for the last year. All business trips have been replaced largely by online meetings. So, the first trip will be to see my parents in Germany and next, a proper vacation to a sunny island with my husband and our daughters.

 

If you are an IDN member in the UAE, please do reach out to Christiane.

Get to know Domingo Armengol, IDN Spain Ambassador

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Get to know Domingo Armengol, IDN Spain Ambassador

Domingo Armengol is our newly appointed IDN Ambassador in Spain.

Tell us about yourself.

I am 55 years old, married, have two children aged 22 and 19, and am working and living in Madrid, Spain.

As a corporate lawyer, I’ve developed the last 20 years of my professional career as secretary of the board and corporate secretary of different companies, always trying to create and promote good corporate governance of the companies and the market.

In my professional career and personal life, I’ve always wanted to be linked to the international environment, which has allowed me to meet new people and cultures and expand my experiences and skills (IDP was a great example).

I’m passionate about mountain sports, travelling and culture.

What are you planning to do to engage with members in your location?

First of all, I plan to get to know them and try to get to know each other, find out what their main interest and goals are, and try to form a community of IDPs.

For that purpose, and considering our current situation, I think we should set a virtual meeting to give the chance to talk and set our common goals and subsequent actions.

As a next step think it will be very positive to bring together the members with people of interest to open the possibility to share and learn about matters of interest for directors or new tendencies in governance (academics, directors, headhunters, etc.).

This interaction could also help that the IDP-C will be known in the market, put it in value in Spain, and open opportunities to the members for future positions in boards.

Where will you fly to when you get on a plane next (and why)?

I hope I’ll be able to fly to Glasgow, Scotland, where my daughter is studying for her university degree, to visit her and to travel together around Scotland (a plan that has I’ve delayed from early 2020).

 

If you are an IDN member in Spain, please do reach out to Domingo.

 

As told to Karen Loon IDP-C, IDN Board Member

How can IDN’s mentoring programme help your board career

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How can IDN’s INsights 2021 Director Mentoring Programme support your director journey?

By Karen Loon IDP-C, IDN Board Member

Starting out on a board career is not easy, even for the most seasoned C-suite executives.  In fact, many people would argue that being a board director is not an extension of your career, but an entirely new one!

To support our INSEAD Directors’ Network (“IDN”) members, our INsights Director Mentoring Programme (‘the “Programme”) which is now in its third year supports IDN members to achieve their specific goals.

This unique programme encompasses one-on-one mentoring by an experienced mentor, peer learning with fellow mentees, as well as optional single mentoring sessions on a specific topic.

We recently asked Helen Wiseman, IDN Board Member, professional mentor and an experienced board director who facilitates the programme to share more.

Can you share a bit about the Programme?

The INsights Director Mentoring Programme is a structured six-month programme offered by IDN that is aimed at members of the IDN who are early in their board careers and who are seeking support from a highly experienced mentor based on a specific set of goals. These goals will be related to their current board roles and/or may be designed to further develop their board career.

Whilst in an ideal world, mentors and mentees come from the same geography, our mentors and mentees “meet” at a distance in keeping with INSEAD’s global positioning. What is key that the mentee can access mentoring support that will help them achieve their goals for the Programme.

The Programme structure is designed to ensure that mentees get the maximum out of the Programme and are not left to “drift”. The Programme is also in line with best practice mentoring programmes, whilst being delivered remotely.

Our mentors, who are experienced board directors volunteer their time and expertise in a way that maximises the value of their contribution and respects their time.  They have the opportunity to expand their networks and get exposure to a potential talent pool.

The role of the Programme Facilitator is to ensure that the programme is on-track through a series of monthly facilitated group sessions (“INsights Peer Mentee Calls”).

What is the time commitment of the Programme?

The INsights 2021 Mentoring Programme will be offered online.  It comprises:

  • Mentee and mentor applications and onboarding
  • Six monthly INsights Peer Mentee Calls (via Zoom)
  • Programme exit – Personal Development Programme, Survey/Feedback/testimonials
  • Programme follow-up, gather 2021 mentee/mentor referrals – “Pay it forward.”

A unique feature of the Programme is that mentees are part of a cohort of peer mentees who go through the programme together and share their insights and learnings with each other on monthly (facilitated) basis.  Subject to preserving confidentiality of mentees and mentors, the mentees get the benefit of a much wider set of insights compared with one-on-one mentoring.

What are some of the benefits to mentees?

Our mentees from the 2020 Programme have shared that they have benefited immensely from the programme in a broad range of areas including:

  • Opportunity to network with similar minded professionals, enhance personal brand and director style
  • Gaining fresh perspective, new ideas and different ways of thinking
  • Providing feedback on practical challenges in the area of board dynamics
  • Knowledge sharing

One of our mentees has shared that “Normally it takes years to come up the NED learning curve…and a few mistakes along the way. My mentor saved me a year or two easily”.

“Board roles can be lonely: you can’t always turn to the other board members to discuss your ambitions, hopes, challenges and doubts. Who provides you with the necessary diversity in perspective? This IDN programme answers that question, with a mentor, and with a community of peers from all over the world” – IDN 2020 INsights Director Mentoring Programme mentee

Can you share a bit more about the profile of the mentors?  Why should I volunteer as a mentor for the Programme?

We draw upon our pool of highly experienced IDN members to be mentors.  Some of them are willing to be a one-on-one mentor for the programme duration and some are happy to be called upon for single-session mentoring based on their specific expertise or experiences. This ensures that there is a wide pool of mentors and who are able to share a broad range of experiences with mentees.

In addition to broadening their networks, many of our mentors have shared that they have learnt a lot as mentors, and that they have found the experience of supporting the lifelong learning enjoyable.

“I always find the mentoring process incredibly rewarding and enlightening. It’s wonderful to feel that I am contributing to someone’s development and there are myriad opportunities to see my own development needs mirrored in the conversations that we have” – IDN 2020 INsights Director Mentoring Programme mentor

I am interested in the joining Programme as a mentor or mentee.  What are the next steps?

Our application process for the IDN INsights 2021 Director Mentoring Programme will open shortly.  Potential mentees should note that selection is based, inter alia, on clarity of their goals and commitment to completing the programme – including joining monthly Peer Mentee calls.

INSEAD Directors Network, IDN – An INSEAD Global Club of International Board Directors.
Our Mission is to foster excellent Corporate Governance through networking, communication and self-improvement. IDN has 1500 members from 80 countries, all Alumni from different INSEAD graduations as MBA, EMBA, GEMBA, and IDP-C. We meet in live IDN webinars and meet-ups arranged by our IDN Ambassadors based in 25 countries. Our IDN website holds valuable corporate governance knowledge in our IDN blog, and we share insights also to our LinkedIn and Twitter  followers. We highlight our member through quarterly sharing of their new board appointments and once a year we give out IDN Awards to prominent board accomplishments. We provide a peer-to-per mentoring and board vacancy service and we come together two times per year at the INSEAD Directors Forum arranged by ICGC. We also engage with ICGC on joint research.