39. Mads Jensen - Startup boards: finding the right non-execs, sticking to strategy, building trust with founders and working with AI

Is there a playbook for startup board success? As Managing Partner at Superseed, Mads Jensen has sat on dozens of startup boards. He considers the following with Nurole CEO Oliver Cummings: does the existence and/or composition of a board impact Mads’ investment decisions (0:44); what does the archetypal problem-solving board meeting look like (2:03); should start-ups hire board members to preempt problems or respond to them (4:17); is it sometimes better to hire inexperienced NEDs with more hunger to prove themselves (6:48); how do you measure board effectiveness (9:11); do you have any examples where boards have failed to add proper value (14:39); have you ever experienced boards where you felt you couldn’t help because of some dynamic (16:14); how do you build trust with executive leaders (18:34); should founders share personal problems with their board (20:02); beyond situational skills, what are you looking for in board members (21:21); what are the candidate red flags (25:20); what do you see as the main threats and opportunities of AI (27:29); how are you using AI on your boards (30:38), and what three key insights would you want listeners to take away from this (31:44)? 

Host: Oliver Cummings

Producer: Will Felton

Editor: Alex Fish

Music: Kate Mac

Audio: Nick Kolt

Email: podcast@nurole.com

Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom