If you’re exploring Board opportunities in Australia then having a board ready LinkedIn profile is a key tool in helping you secure your next role.
Since joining the Women on Boards community, I’ve had the privilege of sharing LinkedIn insights as part of the WOBSX program – an intensive, director-led, peer-to-peer initiative that accelerates women into ASX-listed board roles. Since 2018, nearly 130 women have graduated from the program, with 15 securing ASX directorships and many others now serving on boards in the private, government, and superannuation sectors.
In these sessions – and in LinkedIn profile training workshop I’ve delivered for Women on Boards members – we’ve explored how to make LinkedIn work for your career goals, focusing on how to build your influence and craft a profile that aligns with your aspirations for board service.
How to Create a Board Ready LinkedIn Profile
LinkedIn offers a growing suite of tools that can be adapted to support your evolving career path. When you’re positioning yourself for Board roles, there are key elements of your profile to refine—beyond the essentials of your profile photo, experience, education, and volunteer work.
Let’s break them down:
1. Headline
Your LinkedIn headline should do more than state your current role. Customise it to include your areas of expertise, industry focus, and relevant credentials. For example:
- Non-Executive Director | Risk & Compliance | GAICD | Financial Services
- NED | Climate Strategy | Former CEO | PhD | ESG Governance
2. Background Image
Your background image is visual real estate – use it wisely. Consider uploading an image (or creating a custom graphic in Canva using copyright-free images from Unsplash) that reflects your sector focus or board-level interests.
Want inspiration? Take a look at Nadia Moffatt’s profile for a strong example of a thoughtful, personal brand-aligned background.
3. About Section
Think of this section as your boardroom introduction.
How would you respond to: “Can you tell us a bit about yourself?” That’s the tone and content this section should aim to convey.
Unlike your Board CV, the About section allows room for tone and personality. Write in the first person to reflect your style, values and leadership approach. Writing about yourself in the third person can create distance – LinkedIn is a platform for human connection, so speak directly to the reader.
Remember: you are not just your roles. You are a unique contributor with the experience, wisdom and lived values to bring something distinct to a board. Use this section (up to 2600 characters) to share your narrative, your credentials, and the perspective you offer.
4. Featured Section
This is your opportunity to showcase your credibility and recent impact.
Use the Featured section to highlight:
- Media mentions
- LinkedIn posts or articles you’ve written
- Videos or interviews
- Links to published work or board announcements
Choose 2–3 examples that enhance your story and back up the claims in your profile.
5. ‘Open to Work’ – Is it Right for Board Aspirants?
Yes – with some important caveats.
If you’re actively exploring board opportunities, the ‘Open to Work’ feature can help signal your interest to the right people – without broadcasting it to your entire network. To maintain discretion, make sure you select the “Recruiters only” visibility option. This limits who can see your status to those using LinkedIn’s recruiter tools.
You can list up to five preferred role titles. For board aspirants, these might include:
-
Non-Executive Director (NED)
- Committee Chair
-
Board Advisor
-
Advisory Council Member
It’s worth being strategic here. Choose titles that reflect the types of board roles you are qualified for or aspiring to – and that mirror the language used in board vacancy listings.
If You’re Open to Volunteering
LinkedIn also offers a “Volunteering for causes” option within the ‘Open to’ section of your profile. This is particularly useful if you’re looking to gain experience, give back, or step onto a not-for-profit or community board.
When activated, this is visible to all LinkedIn members. It won’t display a badge on your profile photo (unlike the public Open to Work setting), but the information will appear on your profile and can be picked up in recruiter and organisation searches.
How to Create a Board Ready LinkedIn Profile
A Board-ready LinkedIn profile is not just a digital resume. It’s your strategic positioning tool – a way to show how your experience, judgement and leadership style align with the boards you seek to serve.
Approach it with intention, and allow it to evolve as your aspirations do.
Karen Hollenbach helps thoughtful professionals, leaders and organisations show up with greater clarity, confidence and purpose.
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