Non-Executive Directors

candidate pack
January 2023

CABI is an international not-for-profit organization that improves people’s

lives by providing information and applying scientific expertise to solve
problems in agriculture and the environment. We use our skills to address
the biggest challenges facing humanity, including hunger, poverty, climate
change and gender inequality. CABI is an intergovernmental organization
that can trace its origins back to 1910. Our 49 member countries guide and
influence our core areas of work, which include International Development
and Publishing.

Headquartered in the UK, we have over 400 staff based in 16 countries, with offices in Brazil,
China, Ghana, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Pakistan, Switzerland, Trinidad & Tobago, the UK,
the USA and Zambia.

For more information, please go to www.cabi.org and www.plantwise.org

KNOWLEDGE FOR LIFE

Invitation from Roger Horton,
Chair of the Board
Since I joined the Board of CABI in 2017, I have discovered it to be an organisation that really draws you in. The
palpable sense of mission drives a commitment to improving people’s lives worldwide and especially for the world’s
poorest farmers. My background at the Taylor & Francis Group, the academic publishing arm of Informa plc, gave me
some insight into the application of knowledge but nowhere have I seen ‘knowledge for life’ mean so much or make
such a difference as it does at CABI. As a Non-Executive Director you can also make a difference at CABI.
You may wonder how your experience could be relevant to CABI and vice versa. I came knowing little about the
organisation. The real experiences I could bring were insights into international business, managing growth and
change, and the ability to work with multifunctional and cross-cultural teams.
It is a delight to serve in a truly international organisation. Members of the CABI Board have lived and worked across
the globe and bring a breadth, depth, and diversity of cultural perspectives to the table. But this pales against the rich
diversity of our member countries – which we see most clearly at our triennial review conferences bringing together
countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.
We want our Board to continue to reflect diversity both of gender and geography and of skills and experience. Our new
Non-Executive Directors will help take our work forward, enabling us to achieve our mission.
I have every confidence that people of high-quality will be attracted by the mission and purpose of CABI – would you
consider being one of them?
Roger Horton

KNOWLEDGE FOR LIFE

The Role
Position Non-Executive Director

Reporting to Chair of the Board

Candidate profile
As part of our succession planning, CABI is seeking a number of individuals with board level experience or aspirations
from similarly international and complex organisations. We want both to complement existing skills on the Board and to
take account of the challenges and opportunities facing the organisation now and in the future.

We are therefore seeking to appoint candidates who have a broad range of experience and who may come from a very
broad range of backgrounds. In particular, we are seeking candidates from Asia, or with expertise in the Asia region.

To reflect the breadth of CABI’s operations, this experience may have been gained in either an executive or a non-
executive position, ideally with experience in at least one of the following areas:

• a science-based organisation, ideally in the fields of agriculture and/or the environment, for example, in
educational or research institutions, in government science, or in industry.
• expertise in finance, communication, or intellectual property
• fund raising on a large scale and/or experience with a major funding organisation.
• the application of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and digital technologies to publishing, knowledge
management and big data.
• an international business background within a complex international/global organisation that is decentralised
and multi-cultural, ideally with focus on areas relevant to CABI, such as food or Information and Communication
Technologies, and/or on particular regions of growth for CABI, for example, Africa or the Asia-Pacific.
• major international project development, delivery, or consultancy, gained in either the private or the public sector.
• multilateral finance and development organisations, UN agencies, regional organisations, international research
bodies, development assistance agencies, foundations and NGOs engaged in relief, development, or research.
• commercialisation of scientific research outputs.
• expertise in climate change, agriculture, development, food systems, or gender.

Candidates will demonstrate a combination of intellect, personal presence and standing, communication and listening
skills to be able to make a cogent, clear and compelling contribution at board level and to both support and challenge
the Executive Management Team. They should also have a personal commitment and empathy consistent with CABI’s
mission values and objectives and be willing to act as advocates in promoting CABI both within their personal networks
and to the wider community.

Please click on the image links below to read more about CABI.
Key accountabilities
Non-Executive Directors of CABI do not have the formal legal status (or liabilities) of directors under UK company law
but are expected to observe the same standards and fiduciary duties as if they had this formal legal status.

Non-Executive Directors will:

• attend Board meetings in person or remotely (the Board normally meets four times a year).
• become a member of one or more Board sub-committees (Audit, Remuneration, Nominations and Governance).
• make an active contribution to all Board discussions, promoting open dialogue, mutual respect and constructive
relations between members of the Board.
• ensure that they are fully informed about all issues on which the Board will have to make a decision, particularly
in their own area of expertise, through briefings with the CEO and other members of the Executive Management
Team as appropriate.
• promote the highest standards of corporate governance, integrity and probity.
• encourage effective relationships and open communication between executive and non-executive directors both
inside and outside the boardroom.
• support the CEO and senior management in business development activities through facilitating contacts and
introductions to their networks.
• c
ontinually update their skills, knowledge, and familiarity with the organisation as necessary to fulfil their role on
the Board and its committees.

Appointment
Non-Executive Directors will be elected by the Executive Council in the first instance for a term of three years, which
may be renewed for a further three year term.
Board members receive an annual fee paid quarterly in arrears. The annual fee covers meeting preparation, including
pre-reading and comment on papers, attendance at meetings (in person or in conference), travel and general reference
and counsel in addition to attendance at formal meetings. Reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed. The fee is
currently £5,814 per annum. We anticipate that you will spend up to 10 days per annum on work for CABI.

CABI’s new headquarters, Wallingford, UK. © Hundven-Clements Photography

Governance

Review Conference
The Review Conference is held every three years, bringing together Member Countries, key donors and partners so as
to review CABI’s work programmes and to determine general policies and strategies.

Executive Council
The Executive Council of Member Countries meets annually in London. It has delegated authority from the Review
Conference for the direction of the general operations of CABI, the approval of CABI Board Directors, agreement on
annual operating budgets, appointment of auditors and sign-off of annual accounts as well as monitoring progress
with the implementation of Review Conference resolutions.

CABI Board
The CABI Board oversees CABI’s programmes and its general operations, as well as monitoring financial performance.
It guides management on operational and strategic issues. The Board is responsible to the Executive Council of
Member Countries for the stewardship of CABI at the level of strategy and institutional policy. It is responsible to ensure
that CABI operates in an efficient and commercially oriented manner, whilst having due regard to CABI’s status as a
not-for-profit organisation. The CEO and CFO are also members of the Board.
The Board meets four times per year to develop CABI’s strategy, approve major investments oversee CABI’s
programmes and its general operations. The Board normally meet in person twice a year for 2 days, with at least one
meeting in the UK and possibly one meeting in a CABI regional centre.

Executive Management Team

The Chief Executive Officer is responsible for managing CABI’s day-to-day affairs and the implementation of the
agreed strategies and plans, with the support of the Executive Management Team.

Equal Opportunities
All appointments to the board will be made on merit, against objective criteria and with due regard to the benefits of
diversity on the board, including gender. We would particularly welcome female applicants.

How to apply
To apply please submit your CV and a covering letter via our online recruitment portal at www.cabi.org/careers
We are recruiting a number of Non-Executive Directors to take up office in 2023, and this vacancy will remain open until
we have completed that process.

CABI Review Conference, Oxford 2022