Tried and true, The ACE Online Board Certification Course has proven to prepare candidates to get on boards and be powerful in the boardroom once they land a seat. Do you see yourself sitting on a paying corporate board in the future? Getting certified is an important way to be prepared and the ACE Online Board Certification Course is designed for you. Take it with others in our guided class with group coaching.
THE ACE ONLINE BOARD CERTIFICATION COURSE
All Online – Guided Certification Course – At Your Own Pace
The ACE Online Board Certification Course is made up of 22 modules designed to prepare and certify women as qualified board candidates and get them on corporate paying boards. Once the course is completed and the certification exam is passed, candidates will be designated by Corporate Directors International as qualified board candidates, ready to serve on private and public company boards.
WE NEED MORE WOMEN ON BOARDS
Women are 50% of the population, yet are only 20% of board members in corporate boardrooms – the most important rooms in business. Are you a woman with value to bring to a boardroom? The ACE Online Board Certification Course will give you the key elements you need to get you there.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
This board certification training will help raise your profile and create a strategy for you to approach the selection process of getting on a corporate board. We explore the critical issues facing corporate boards now and in the future. We also discuss how women on boards play a critical role and what to expect being the first, second, or third female to join any particular board.
The most common way people get on boards is through established relationships with key executives, directors, recruiters, and community leaders, as well as communicating your interest and desire to be on a board. The number of board seats available is limited, so it is key to be prepared and willing to raise your hand when one comes along.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
The ideal candidate is any professional woman who seeks to join a corporate board sometime in her career and is passionate about making a difference, using her voice, and collaborating with others at the highest levels. Women with financial literacy, business acumen, perspective, and experience, including women business owners and entrepreneurs, are included. This program is also appropriate for members of nonprofit or private boards who wish to serve on corporate boards.
MEET YOUR FACILITATOR
This program was specially designed by Michele Ashby, an active, independent board member with over 20 years of corporate board experience. Michele’s long career in finance, mining, oil & gas, and energy industries, along with her entrepreneurial successes, has raised her profile in numerous arenas resulting in six corporate board positions since 2005. She has created and facilitated hundreds of conferences and meetings globally for over two decades. She is passionate about achieving gender balance in the boardroom (50/50) and dedicates herself to mentoring and teaching women how to win board seats and make a difference from the top.
Through her personal business experiences, board positions, CEO roles, and consulting, Michele creates a dynamic environment for participants to engage in growing personally and professionally. Her experience in training groups of peers has shown how this type of structure leverages the expertise in the room, while exhibiting good board practices which benefit the individual as well as the group.
MEET THE ACE BOARD CANDIDATES
Pattie Money
Seasoned C-Suite executive with over 20 years leading the People function in high growth, best places to work, private and public technology companies. Part of the executive team that led the organization through a successful IPO with both Monotype and SendGrid. M&A experience both domestic and international with deal sizes ranging from $2M to $2B. Direct experience scaling organizations from 150 employees to over 3,000 and growing revenue from less than $100M to over $1B. Extensive experience developing programs that drive inclusion and belonging as well as recruitment to ensure a diverse workforce and Board.
Uma Gopaldass
Board-certified global expert on effective Governance, Enterprise Risk Management, Global Capital Investments, Supply Chain and Digital Transformation, and Human Capital Excellence. With over 30-years of operational experience in 5 continents across Metals and Mineral Mining, Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Renewable Energy industries. Managed multiple global capital development totaling $30B+ including M&As, Global Expansions and Organizational restructurings for Fortune 500 corporations including Newmont Mining, Schlumberger, and Accenture. Generated over $2.7B in revenue including operational and workforce efficiencies. A fiduciary leader active on two boards, providing governance and risk assessment for several investor councils.
Shannon Saviers
Shannon Saviers is an accomplished and business building corporate leader known for empowering boards and corporate executives to open new markets and achieve accelerated growth. Shannon has a proven record of success advising and leading large multinational organizations in technology, media and healthcare industries though strategic growth, acquisitions, and large-scale innovation initiatives, including transforming digital and technical capabilities. She is a champion of building modern workforces through inclusion and brings a deep understanding of board responsibilities through her work industry, non-profit, and education boards.
Andi Rugg
An accomplished executive and independent director with over 20 years of experience, Andi Rugg is a collaborative leader, adept at bringing people together to solve complex problems. Her experiences include developing and executing innovative strategies by building trusted relationships, global experience in leading and motivating people, and bringing new programs and products to market. Andi holds an MBA and an Executive Certificate in Blockchain Technologies from MIT and a CDI.D from Corporate Directors International.
Dawn Burgess Lima
Energy executive with over 20 years of leadership experience in operations, guiding growth strategy and implementing innovative technology. Technology advisor with experience in both public and private companies across five continents. Grew production over 45% two years consecutively. Led teams on M&A, participating in over $225Million in transactions. Traveled and worked in over 30 countries before turning 30yrs old.
WHAT ACE GRADUATES ARE SAYING
“I have only positive thoughts about Michele’s CDI course. Whether you are looking to solidify your career credentials or in fact target an independent Board of Directors position, she covers all aspects relevant to positive senior executive decisions. The course thoroughly covers both the technical aspects (finance, law, science) as well as behavioral, moral and practical aspects effectively in a most absorbing manner. It is not only informative but a fun experience.”
— Susan Mitchell
LEARN ABOUT THE PROGRAM
This is a guided online course with specific start dates to motivate registrants to participate as a cohort and complete all the work with others in the cohort. Group coaching will be provided to registrants for support. Participants may complete the course at their own pace and will be given suggested timelines. They will have 90 days to complete the course. After completing all of the modules, they will be issued a link to the CDI Board Certification Exam and will have 60 days to take the exam and pass it to receive their certification. Start dates for each cohort will be announced in advance and registrants may sign up before the cut-off dates.
This specially designed program features a rigorous curriculum that is customized to provide corporate director training for professional women. The program covers board governance, financial acumen, risks and responsibilities for directors, and how women can get on boards, along with gender diversity in the boardroom. This is an intense program designed for busy women to accommodate schedules and responsibilities while certifying and preparing them to be ready for a board seat. Participants will learn the skills to be an effective board member and gain practical tools for landing a seat on a corporate board.
BOARD READY
Candidates come away with their personalized Action Plan to get on their target company boards.
BOARD PREPARED
Expert speakers provide candidates with specialized info on ESG, securities law, accounting, and LinkedIn.
BOARD CERTIFIED
First board certification in the US is recognized by companies looking for qualified board candidates.
WHAT YOU GET
Through assessment, analysis, and interaction, this training provides deep background and insider knowledge to understand how to become an effective board member. Here are some of the things you will learn during the program:
- Testing your readiness and building your personal strategy
- Developing your value proposition
- Composing your board resume
- Preparing for the interview process
- Understanding financial statements and finding red flags
- Understanding roles and responsibilities of board members
- Learning the importance of committees on boards and which committees fit you
- Working with and evaluating the CEO
- Communicating effectively with stakeholders, other board members, and management
- Evaluating your target companies
- Going after your first corporate board seat
- Programming for ACE graduates and features in the profile catalog and online
- How women are perceived in the boardroom
If you're wondering what the different benefits are of this online program vs. the live certification course, compare the benefits & pricing here.
22 MODULES OF INVALUABLE INFO
The ACE Online Board Certification Course covers pertinent topics necessary for board members to understand, such as board governance, financial acumen, risks and responsibilities, and gender dynamics in the boardroom. Participants will learn how to create a killer board resume, nail a board interview, and how to be respected in the boardroom.
Additionally, there are a number of exercises and discussions in the class regarding your personal board brand. Some of the modules include exercises like Self-Discovery, Your Value Proposition, Preparedness, and Authority. This is the “how to” of becoming a qualified board candidate and creating your own board image to share with your network and to get you on a board.
The ACE Online Board Certification Course contains direct content from the ACE Live Board Certification Program, which has a proven track record of helping to get many women on boards since 2018. This online version is recorded with your facilitator, Michele Ashby, leading the class and also a cohort of ACE graduates in a classroom setting just as the live class would be held. The ACE graduates share their journeys and experiences with each other as they go through the course and bring each of the registered virtual participants into the room with them. Their interactions, questions, and sharings provide insights into real life events they have had.
Registration for the course includes all of the 22 modules, workbook, PDFs and exercises, group coaching calls, and the CDI Certification Exam. The workbook is in 3 volumes and totals over 250 pages of material.
- Module 1: Welcome and Introduction to Course
- Module 2: Why We Need More Women on Boards – Setting You Up for Success
- Module 3: Your Preparedness and Authority
- Module 4: Self Discovery – Imposter Syndrome
- Module 5: Your Value Proposition
- Module 6: Board Resume
- Module 7: The Patriarchal Model
- Module 8: Maximizing Your LinkedIn Profile as a Qualified Board Candidate with Guest Speaker Michelle McGlade
- Module 9: Board Governance – Part One
- Module 10: Board Governance – Part Two
- Module 11: Accounting Introduction
- Module 12: Champions – Who Are Yours?
- Module 13: Gender Dynamics in the Boardroom with John Kelley, Part One and Two
- Module 14: Roles and What to Expect as Board Members – Types of Boards, Time Commitment, Compensation, Committees, Agendas, and More
- Module 15: Elevator Pitches
- Module 16: Your Ideal Board
- Module 17: More Accounting Topics: Red Flags to Watch for in Financials
- Module 18: Powers, Duties, and Liabilities for Directors with Natascha Kiernan
- Module 19: ESG for Directors and What You Need to Know with Corinne Boone
- Module 20: Your Action Plan
- Module 21: Your Commitment to Getting on a Board and the Board Interview
- Module 22: You Are Done – Time to Get Certified
GROUP ACCOUNTABILITY
Experience shows us that working in a group can be more motivating than working on our own. That is why the ACE Online Board Certification Course is a guided course to encourage group participation. Group coaching calls will be held throughout the course to answer questions from the registered candidates as they go through the modules in the course. Also, participants may share their experiences and learn from each other as well as encourage each other’s progress.
GET ON THE WAITLIST
WEEKLY GROUP COACHING
Coaching is an important part of the ACE Board Certification Programs and group coaching will be offered for the online course. These will be weekly pre-set calls for the first four weeks of the course and then as need by the group for the remainder of the 90 days. The calls are meant for answering questions the candidates may have regarding the course or their own experiences once they begin using the tools they have been given to get them on boards.
GET ON THE WAITLISTBOARD CERTIFICATION EXAM
Once all the modules have been completed, the candidate will be sent a link to the CDI Certification Exam. The candidate then has 60 days to take and pass the test. The test is multiple choice and consists of questions about board governance, financial acumen, risks and responsibilities, and ethics, all which are covered in the course materials and content. The exam is online, open book, and the test taker has 2 hours to complete the exam. The questions are randomized on each test. The candidate may take the test over if they do not pass the first time.
Once the candidate passes the exam, they will be sent a certificate from CDI that they are a certified board candidate. They may post this to their social media and add to their resume. They will have their designation as a certified board candidate from CDI and may list it as such “CDI.D.” The CDI Board Certification is recognized by companies who are looking for certified board candidates.
GET ON THE WAITLIST
THIS PROGRAM IS FOR YOU IF…
β You are a woman leader brave enough to step into the corporate boardroom where all the biggest decisions are made.
β You want to get on a paying board and want to learn how.
β You believe in bringing your value and passion to the boardroom.
ITβS TIME
It’s time – you want to get a board seat and you know it.
CONTRIBUTE
Contribute – you have a lot of value to add to a board.
DRIVEN
Driven – you are a driven leader and want to make a difference.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What experience do you need on a board?
At what point in my career should I start looking for a board position?
How do I know if I’m qualified for a board?
More women are needed in the boardroom – is that you?
Will you be brave enough to step into the boardroom and make the biggest decisions? We need you now more than ever. Get yourself ready to be competent and confident in the boardroom. Join the ACE Online Board Certification Course and be ready.
By the end of the program, you will have the tools and insider tips to be prepared to take your place on a board. After completion of the program, you will also have access to a board certification through Corporate Directors International. Once completed, you will be designated as a qualified board candidate, CDI.D, by Corporate Directors International.
You will discover how to use your networks and gain insight into choosing the right board opportunities for you. You will understand how to contribute meaningfully as a director and how to incorporate a corporate directorship into your career plan.
