Broadening perspective and understanding the role of the director

Progressing through the Australian Institute of Company Directors Foundations course followed by the flagship Company Directors Course (CDC) has given banker Ida Wong-Taylor key insights into how to assess business issues from a director’s perspective.

This article appeared in The Advertiser on 5 December 2017 (subscription may be required).

The Lending Area Manager at BankSA first undertook the three-day Foundations of Directorship course before completing the CDC across five weekends earlier this year.

The Foundations course touches on governance, finance for directors and strategy and risk, while the CDC broadens out these issues and provides valuable insights into how to view a business through the “director lens”.

Ms Wong-Taylor, who is also a member of the AICD SA/NT’s Tomorrow’s Director committee, said the CDC gave her a new appreciation of the skills needed to be a high-performing company director.

“The CDC is certainly a game-changing course that can influence the way you perceive how and what value you bring to a board,” she said.

“Being in banking and finance for over 15 years, the learnings on the CDC has framed my experience in a manner that has me question at board meetings: what difference can I make here?

“Most importantly, post-CDC, being engaged with the changing nature of boardroom themes and influences via AICD Director Downloads, events and literature are a must.”