The HBS Board of Directors Alumni Resume Database has been developed with the intention of connecting alumni with executive search firms and organizations seeking board of director's candidates. This system launched in Fall of 2006, and is the first of its kind. The system allows board candidates to easily upload a resume and create an on-line profile that recruiters can search. Currently, the database holds over 2000 qualified HBS alumni, of which 80% have had previous board experience. Candidates possess a wide range of industry experiences, leading with manufacturing, finance, consulting, and technology. Searching for the right candidate only takes a couple of minutes. This video will show you how.
To access the database go to the link indicated here and you will see this log in screen. If you’ve previously registered, log into the system with your username and password. If you are a first time user without a profile, please click on Create a New Account and then follow the prompts. In order to complete a new profile, you will require a passkey which will be provided to you if you contact HBS at board_resume@hbs.edu.
Once you’ve logged in, you will come to the dashboard, where you can manage your information conveniently from one place. Click on Candidate Search to begin searching.
You will come to the Candidate Results page which shows the total number of candidates in the system. Click on Create Search to filter down the pool of candidates.
This is the search page where you can filter according to specific criteria. To illustrate, we will search for someone with specific industry experience. Click on the appropriate green bullet.
As you can see, you can specify from a whole range of industry experiences, and you can choose multiple industries depending on your requirements. In our example, we will choose Tech, which includes a number of subgroups as indicated by the plus sign. Then, click Save.
The system automatically tells me that 787 candidates are matched from the Tech industry. We will continue to refine our search based on board experience.
Each search criteria has a different set of options. In this example, we are looking for a candidate with previous Board Experience, specifically in “auditor relations”. Click on the filter and then save.
These two filters allow us to narrow down to 157 candidates, still too large a pool to individually review. We will refine one more time based on years of professional employment.
As with the previous filters, we’ll click on the desired criteria. In this example, we will choose 10-15 years, and then save.
Back in the Search Criteria page, the system tells us that within three steps, we have narrowed down our pool to 6 candidates. If I decide I don’t want to refine any further and want to review each candidate in more detail. Click on View Results.
The Candidate Results page shows the individual names of candidates meeting my specified criteria. One way to review individual candidates is by clicking on each candidate name. Alternatively, there is a quicker method which creates a batch file consisting of the matched candidates’ resumes. Click "Forward".
The email address box automatically pops up. Enter an email address and subject to send the resume batch file to yourself or a designated individual. Click on Send.
The system automatically generates the email directly to your inbox within seconds.
Open the email and the attached pdf file. How this is done will depend on your email application. The pdf file will contain all the resumes of the matched candidates for your easy review. You’re done! The HBS alumni resume database easily creates a short list for your board search in a couple of minutes.
If you would like access to the database, or if you have any questions or comments, please email us at board_resume@hbs.edu. The Board of Directors alumni resume database is one of the many services provided by HBS Alumni Career and Professional Development. Additional information may be found on our website. You’re welcome to contact us through the channels listed here.