100. Building Effective Boards in a Changing World with Ray Garcia
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, co-hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh welcome Ray Garcia, senior partner at PwC and leader of PwC’s Governance Insights Center, to discuss findings from its 2026 Annual Corporate Directors Survey. Drawing on responses from more than 600 corporate directors, Garcia explores how boards can improve their effectiveness, strengthen strategic oversight and adapt to a rapidly changing business environment. The conversation examines board assessments, cybersecurity and AI governance, the quality of information directors receive from management, and the need for more...
info_outline
99. What's Your Story with Anouk Pappers
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh speak with Anouk Pappers, CEO of Signitt and founder of CoolBrands People. As a brand anthropologist, Anouk advises board directors, C-suite executives and leadership teams on developing their executive narrative and building their digital reputation. Throughout her career, Anouk has interviewed more than 900 CEOs, board members and business owners around the world, publishing 15 books around their stories. Anouk shares why networking for a board seat is a long-term process built on relationships, reputation and trust. She...
info_outline
98. Turning the Board into a Competitive Advantage with Betsy Atkins
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh speak with Betsy Atkins, a three-time CEO, serial entrepreneur, and one of the most experienced public company directors in the U.S., having served on more than 38 public boards and through 17 IPOs. Betsy explains why a board stuck in an oversight mindset can never be a competitive asset, and what it actually takes for directors to lean into growth and innovation: mentoring the CEO, becoming a thought partner, opening doors, and thinking like an owner. She makes the case that the attributes that matter most in a director today are...
info_outline
97. The Modern Boardroom Playbook with Jonathan Foster
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, Jonathan Foster joins hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh to discuss what makes a board effective in today’s evolving governance landscape. Jonathan is the founder and managing partner of Current Capitals Partners. Drawing from his experience serving on more than 50 boards, Jonathan’s book, On Board: The Modern Playbook for Corporate Governance, shares lessons on board evaluations, activist thinking, shareholder accountability, and why the best directors listen first. The conversation also explores how boards should approach CEO activism, director...
info_outline
96. Board Matchmaker: Building Global Networks with Mark Hamill
On Boards Podcast
In this episode, Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh welcome Mark Hamill, CEO of The Naked Headhunter and co-founder of the Virtual Advisory Board (VAB). Mark shares the origin story of VAB from its start during the COVID-19 pandemic and how it scaled into a global network of over 1,300 members spanning 4,000 boards. The conversation dives into the power of peer-to-peer networks, the mechanics of building effective boards, and the tangible ROI that strong boards can deliver. They also unpack the realities of board recruitment, what it takes to land a first board seat, and why clarity of expertise...
info_outline
95. Curiosity, AI, and the Future of the Boardroom with Rod Adkins
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh speak with Rod Adkins, board chairman, former IBM executive, and author of Curiosity Redefines the Limits. Rod shares insights from nearly 25 years of board experience, focusing on how directors can effectively oversee risk in an era of rapid technological disruption. The conversation explores how boards are evolving their governance structures to address increasingly complex risks tied to technology, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. Rod explains why traditional audit committees are often no longer sufficient on...
info_outline
94. Bringing Good Governance Home: Inside Co-op and Condo Boardrooms with Tina Larsson
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh speak with Tina Larsson, a former Wall Street analyst, co-founder of The Folsom Group, and author of Living The High Life. Tina works with co-op, condo, and other HOA boards to improve governance to reduce costs, manage major building projects and oversee their shared residence effectively. Tina shares how she and her husband became involved in board governance after discovering that their New York City co-op board was poorly managed and incurring significant unnecessary expenses. After organizing their co-op neighbors...
info_outline
93. Multi-generational family businesses with David Karofsky
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh welcome David Karofsky, a principal consultant with The Family Business Consulting Group and co-author of So, you're in the Family Business: A Guide to Sustainability. David brings both professional expertise and personal experience to the discussion, having grown up in a multi-generational family business and later building a family business consulting practice alongside his father. Most recently, his son Adam has also joined David in his consulting practice. He shares how family businesses operate at the unique intersection...
info_outline
92. AI vs. Humans in the Boardroom: Whom Do You Trust, with Babs Ryan.
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh speak with Babs Ryan, an innovation executive, board director, and AI strategist with experience spanning global technology, marketing, consumer products, and financial services. Ryan discusses the evolving role of artificial intelligence in governance, the future of AI on boards of directors, and realistic scenarios for AI adoption, in a discussion about the possible ways AI can be integrated into boardrooms. The episode also explores broader governance issues, including board refreshment and oversight responsibilities, and how AI...
info_outline
91. Reinforcing Board Cybersecurity with Gary Evee
On Boards Podcast
In this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh welcome Gary Evee, cybersecurity leader and founder and CEO of Aprivé. His company is pioneering a concierge approach to cybersecurity protection, providing services that protect high-value individuals and families from the digital threat landscape. Drawing on more than 25 years of experience across IBM, cybersecurity leadership, and board service, Gary explains how breaches increasingly originate through individuals rather than systems. He highlights how personal devices, home networks, and online data exposure create...
info_outlineIn this episode of On Boards, hosts Joe Ayoub and Raza Shaikh speak with Anouk Pappers, CEO of Signitt and founder of CoolBrands People. As a brand anthropologist, Anouk advises board directors, C-suite executives and leadership teams on developing their executive narrative and building their digital reputation.
Throughout her career, Anouk has interviewed more than 900 CEOs, board members and business owners around the world, publishing 15 books around their stories.
Anouk shares why networking for a board seat is a long-term process built on relationships, reputation and trust. She also explores how AI is changing the way board candidates are discovered and evaluated, and why leaders need an online presence that is both human-readable and machine-readable while remaining authentic.
Key takeaways
-
Your personal brand is already there
-
A personal brand is not a logo or tagline. It communicates who you are, what you stand for and what you bring to the table.
-
Start by identifying your goals, target audiences, unique experiences and the two or three areas for which you want to be known.
-
Your combination of experiences and accomplishments can differentiate you, even when your individual skills may not seem unique on their own.
-
Purpose makes leaders and organizations memorable
-
People with a clear purpose and vision tend to leave a lasting impression.
-
Purpose extends beyond maximizing profits to considering people, the planet and profit, and integrating broader stakeholder value into a company's business model.
-
A company's brand can evolve over time while its core values remain consistent.
-
-
Networking for a board seat requires long-term relationship-building
-
Board opportunities often begin with existing relationships and recommendations within a board's professional network.
-
Building relationships with board directors, CEOs, executive teams, and executive search professionals helps increase visibility and credibility.
-
Successful networking requires consistent engagement, trust and a reputation that others feel comfortable putting forward
-
Visibility and positioning are just as important as credentials
-
Education, experience and professional credentials are foundational, but they do not automatically lead to a board seat.
-
Candidates need a clear narrative that makes it easy for others to understand their expertise and recommend them for opportunities.
-
Articles, videos and speaking engagements can create proof points that reinforce credibility of your expertise.
-
AI is changing how board candidates are discovered and evaluated
-
Traditional search engines reveal a person's digital footprint, while AI tools can interpret that information and generate a narrative about the individual.
-
Board candidates should develop an online presence that is both human-readable and machine-readable.
-
Authenticity, human connection, trust and critical thinking remain essential in the boardroom.
Quotes
-
“You need to make an impact. You need to share your story over and over again. And you need to make sure that people can remember you.”
-
“Everybody has a personal brand… You can take control and define your brand, or you can let it be defined by others or maybe even worse, let it not be defined at all.”
-
“AI is really moving fast, but this personal connection, that's what we need. And I think that's what we need to really reinforce in the boardroom.”
Links
Guest bio
Anouk Pappers works with board directors and senior executives on a part of leadership that has become impossible to ignore: how they are professionally perceived when board roles are being considered.
She is known for guiding leaders with turning strong executive experience into clear board relevance. Her work focuses on defining the story behind a leader’s judgment, perspective, and contribution, strengthening how they are spoken about among their professional peers, and aligning their online presence with the roles they are ready to take on. For aspiring board directors, this creates greater clarity and confidence. For sitting board members, it sharpens positioning, visibility, and influence.
A brand anthropologist, author, speaker, and founder of Signitt, Anouk brings together narrative, visibility, and online presence with a clear focus on board positioning. She draws out what matters in a board context: how a leader thinks, what they see, and the value they bring as a non-executive.
Anouk’s perspective has been shaped by a global career that began in 2002 with “Around the World in 80 Brands,” a project that took her across continents in search of brands with purpose and people with vision. From Amsterdam, she expanded her work to Dubai, São Paulo, and New York, collaborating with companies including PepsiCo, Apple, Google, Mercedes-Benz, Harley-Davidson, and Unilever.
Over the years, Anouk has interviewed more than 900 CEOs, CMOs, board directors, and senior business leaders, and published 15 books built around their stories and insights. That body of work gave her a rare understanding of how credibility, trust, and leadership value are communicated across industries, cultures, and board-level settings.
She is a frequent speaker at board and leadership forums, including NACD, PDA, EWOB, WCD, C200, Deloitte Board Readiness, 50/50 Women on Boards, Women in the Boardroom, DDI, TLN, and ELC.
Anouk believes that experience may open the door, but positioning, visibility, and narrative often shape who is remembered, who is trusted, and who is invited into the room.