Recruitment: Edtech’s solution to the governance gap

Recruiting school governors and trustees is a familiar challenge for many boards. According to the National Governance Association (NGA), two-thirds of governing boards have at least one vacancy, and 38 per cent have two or more.

Overall, the NGA estimates there are 20,000 vacancies and that things are worse now than pre-pandemic.

I’m chair of governors for a large primary school in London. We’re one of the lucky ones: we generally don’t have more than one vacancy. Two or more vacancies, we are keenly aware, would have a substantial impact on our ability to drive improvement and provide scrutiny.

When we do have a vacancy, we use as many ways as possible to try to recruit: school newsletters, advertising and through our own networks. But the recruitment challenge needs creative solutions. I’m also the co-founder of an edtech company, so you won’t be surprised to hear me say that I think the edtech sector can help – but perhaps not how you think.

There are more than 1,000 edtech companies in the UK, as well as many international companies with offices here. Their workforce is one that is committed to education, so let’s encourage them to become governance volunteers.

After all, volunteering is already a win-win. The organisation benefits, as well as the individual. Being a school governor has helped me to become a better leader, to work more effectively with my own board and to better understand how our offer interacts with the real life of a school. I can see how government legislation is impacting schools, make more informed decisions about when to engage with school staff, and appreciate the wider pressures and challenges educators and leaders face.

In turn, many in the edtech sector can provide a wealth of relevant expertise. The pandemic has accelerated schools’ understanding of how technology can support teaching and learning, but those in edtech have a depth of experience that is a valuable addition to the school board. They also understand the right questions to ask edtech suppliers.

Those leading edtech companies also bring their experience of business and entrepreneurship. Although different in their purpose to commercial companies, the responsibilities for governors and trustees are surprisingly similar to those of a board, including strategy, risk and finance, and overall performance.

The National Governance Association (NGA) reports that the number of governors and trustees under 40 is just six per cent, the lowest on record since 2015. Only one per cent are under 30. Edtech is a young sector, as a visit to one of the edtech trade shows demonstrates. Recruiting from edtech has the potential to bring younger individuals into governance.

For those earlier in their careers, being a governor or trustee offers board-level experience – invaluable for anyone hoping to become a future edtech leader. The NGA also reports that governance volunteers develop skills in finance, staff recruitment, problem solving, teamwork and communication – all areas relevant to their career ambitions.

The best way to reach out to edtech companies to talk to them about governance is through the British Education Suppliers Association (BESA), the membership body that represents many edtech companies. BESA operates a free-to-use job board and publishes a weekly newsletter about opportunities. Sending information about your vacancy to BESA should help you to reach edtech companies.

The NGA has also launched a film about volunteering as a school governor or trustee which provides an engaging introduction to the role.

I have been a governor for four years and it’s been better than any training I could have imagined. It’s been hugely inspiring and helped me to become even more embedded in a sector I value a great deal. In turn, I hope my expertise and experience has helped our school to be its very best and provide an excellent education for all our children.

By bringing more edtech professionals into governance, we can ensure every school has their full complement of committed governors and improve the sector’s understanding of its clients.

That really would be a win-win.