Bringing aboard a younger director.

• Author: Schmelkin, Alex
• Position: BOARD COMPOSITION

Alex Schmelkin joined the board of United Stationers Inc. in 2012 at the age of 36. United Stationers, whose shares are traded on Nasdaq, is a leading wholesale supplier of business products with 2014 net sales of $5.3 billion. Schmelkin is CEO of Alexander Interactive (Ai), a New York-based firm that he founded in 2002 and grew from a small web agency to a full-scale web design and engineering company. Close readers of Directors & Boards will recall that we interviewed this digital entrepreneur for the cover story on "Recruiting the Digital Director" in the First Quarter 2013 issue, l/l/e have returned to ask him for guidance on how a board might best bring on a young new director. Here is his advice.

--James Kristie

Have you recently welcomed a younger director to join your board? This "youngster" was likely recruited to contribute a fresh perspective to the boardroom. He or she has a relevant background in the emerging needs of a large corporation, ranging from digital expertise to customer centricity. Yet, by simple virtue of their lack of years of service to a public company, special attention will need to be focused on how to best assimilate the new director. Consider these tips to help the new person feel most welcome and readily become a productive board member.

Offer an expanded orientation

There's a good chance that it's the first time your younger director is serving on a public company board. Consider that your standard new board member orientation may be insufficient. Invite the new director to meetings with varied members of senior management to thoroughly introduce him or her to the important commercial aspects of the business. Spend extra time reviewing the purpose and scope of each committee, particularly audit and comp, which could be totally new concepts for the director.

Assign a mentor

Assign a seasoned member of the board as a mentor for the first few board meetings. The mentor should not only talk about company strategy, but also the basic mechanics of the board, the cadence of the meetings, and the various personalities and backgrounds of the other board members.

Encourage relationships with management

The most effective board members form deep relationships with senior management. This may not be obvious to a less-experienced, younger director. Encourage the new director to spend a lot of time with the CEO and other key members of executive leadership.

Welcome fresh perspectives

You welcomed the new director for his...