Leeds can become a fintech powerhouse, says Georgina Mitchell

EVER thought about becoming a non-executive director? It’s not an option for anyone who expects opportunities to land in their lap, as Georgina Mitchell can testify.

Ms Mitchell has a CV which includes board level experience and regular appearances on BBC Breakfast, discussing the highs and lows of the stock market.

She was determined to broaden her horizons by developing a career structure that involved working with a wide variety of businesses, so she completed the Financial Times Non-Executive Director diploma, as a stepping stone towards her first non-exec position.

“It is certainly not for the faint-hearted, with five different modules, but the most interesting one was about the ‘behaviours of a non-exec’,’’ she recalled.

“It’s very different to being a CEO or an executive. You are not the primary decision maker. That’s one of the key things. The decisions are made by the executive board.

“The non-execs’ role is to go in and question the decisions that have been made, and the assumptions that underlie them, and the objectives, and whether they fit with the business plan of the firm.

“It can be quite hard for somebody who is used to being on an executive board, or in an executive environment, to stop themselves from saying, ‘ No I think you should do this’ because it is not your decision.”

The best non-execs enable the CEO to have more confidence in their own decision-making abilities.

Ms Mitchell, who was once a member of the operating board at the Leeds-based investment management and share dealing firm Redmayne-Bentley, certainly had to display tenacity to find her first non-exec post.

She recalled: “It’s all about your network. On the course, they say it can easily take you up to two years to get your first non-exec role.