Universities and higher education colleges are diverse and vibrant communities, often playing important roles in the local or regional economy. They therefore need members of governing bodies with substantial experience at senior levels in either the private or public sector, and the skills and knowledge of governance that come with that.
Universities and colleges are also multi-million pound businesses and operate in an increasingly competitive global market place, and they therefore need governors comfortable with the board level challenges that this provides. This does not mean that all prospective governors need experience in the private sector, but it does mean that most prospective members will have had experience of dealing at a policy level with the 'standard' issues affecting all large organisations such as finance, HR, marketing and strategic development.
Many governing bodies and their nominations committees now use systematic and transparent processes to recruit members, including a 'skills matrix' to identify both the general and specific competencies and skills needed to be an effective board member. Boards will almost certainly want at least one lawyer, and also experience in a range of disciplines such as property, public relations and personnel. By matching existing members against such a list, areas where there are gaps or weaknesses can be identified and dealt with. However, it is important that potential recruits not only have suitable professional skills but also the motivation, personality and time to make effective governors.
The Committee of University Chairs (CUC) has produced an outline role description for members of governing bodies and many institutions now have their own role descriptions, which can be made available to prospective governors.