Non-Executive Director
Non-executive directors sit on a board to oversee management and bring independent judgement to strategy, risk and major decisions, without running the business.
- Median salary*
- $145,600
4.2%vs last year, before tax
- People employed*
- 5,200
0.0%vs last year
- Projected growth*
- +3.5%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Low
- automation risk
- Average hours*
- 15/wk
−25h vs all jobs
- Shortage status*
- Not in shortage
national
Non-executive directors serve on the boards of listed companies, private firms, government bodies and not-for-profits, but take no part in day-to-day management. Their work is to test the executive's performance, financial reporting and risk settings, and to decide matters such as mergers, executive appointments and succession. What separates them from an executive director or a senior manager is that they hold no operational authority, yet they carry the same legal duties under the Corporations Act, and listed company boards must also follow the ASX Corporate Governance Principles.
How much do non-executive directors earn?
The median full-time salary for a non-executive director is $145,600 per annum, before tax, up $30,600 since 2018.
Fees depend heavily on the type and size of organisation, so a listed company directorship and a community not-for-profit board sit at very different points. Chairing a committee such as audit or risk usually attracts a fee on top of the base director's fee, and a director who holds several appointments earns from each of them. Most directorships are part-time roles held alongside other work, so annual earnings reflect how many boards someone sits on as much as the rate for any one of them.
What does a non-executive director do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Reading board papers, financial statements and committee reports before each meeting
- Questioning management on strategy, performance and risk exposure
- Serving on or chairing a committee such as audit, risk or remuneration
- Monitoring compliance with the Corporations Act and, for listed companies, the ASX governance principles
- Deciding on major matters such as mergers, executive appointments and succession
What skills do non-executive directors need?
Employers look for strategy development, risk and internal controls, financial reporting, backed by Board portal software (e.g. Diligent) fluency and strong stakeholder management.
Specialist skills
- Strategy development
- Risk and internal controls
- Financial reporting
- Regulatory compliance
Software and tools
- Board portal software (e.g. Diligent)
- Video conferencing platforms
- Financial reporting systems
- Governance and risk frameworks
- Company constitution and by-laws
General skills
- Stakeholder management
- People leadership
- Written communication
- Problem solving
Is the job growing?
About 5,200 people work as non-executive directors in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 3.5% over the decade to 2035. That's modest growth: demand is steady rather than booming.
How do you become a non-executive director?
Here's the path most non-executive directors take, step by step.
- 1Build a senior career first
Boards recruit from executive ranks and from senior specialists such as finance, risk, legal and technology leaders. Most first-time directors arrive after 15 or more years in those roles, because the board's job is to test management from a position of experience.
- 2Learn the governance side of the job
Running a team is not the same as overseeing one. The Australian Institute of Company Directors' Company Directors Course, or a graduate qualification in governance, covers directors' duties, board dynamics, financial oversight and risk, and is the credential nomination committees recognise.
- 3Take a first board role where appointment is easier
Not-for-profit, sporting, community health and government advisory boards are the usual entry point. Some are paid and some are not, but they give you a meeting cycle, committee experience and a record of board contribution that larger organisations look for.
- 4Get your details in front of the people who fill vacancies
Board vacancies are often filled through director search firms, professional networks and board registers rather than advertised roles. Nomination committees work from a skills matrix, so being clear about what you bring, such as audit, cyber or industry knowledge, matters more than a general expression of interest.
- 5Apply for a director identification number and keep learning
Every director needs a director identification number from ASIC before appointment, and listed company boards also apply independence and tenure rules to non-executive roles. Ongoing director education is expected as regulation and governance expectations change.
Ready to apply as a non-executive director?
Whether you're working toward becoming a non-executive director or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a non-executive director move to?
We don't list lateral moves for non-executive directors: leaving means a full new qualification rather than a career move, and the realistic routes in are covered under how to become one.
Who works as a non-executive director?
The typical non-executive director is 58 years old; 65% are men, 6% work full-time, and full-timers average 15 hours a week.
- 58
- Median age
- 35%
- Female share
- 6%
- Full-time
- −25h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a non-executive director?
The job runs on a meeting calendar set a year ahead, with the real work happening in the days before each meeting as you read papers and work out what to ask. Directors typically hold more than one role, so the pattern is a portfolio of board commitments around other work rather than a five-day week in one organisation. It suits people who are comfortable influencing decisions they don't deliver, and who can absorb a complex business quickly enough to challenge it.
What people like
- Influence without the operational load. You help set direction and test management's plans without carrying responsibility for delivering them day to day.
- A view across whole organisations. Papers and discussion cover finance, risk, people and strategy together rather than one function, which is a change for people coming out of a specialist executive role.
- Working with experienced peers. Boardrooms bring together people from different industries and functions, and the level of discussion tends to suit someone with senior experience.
- A pattern you can build around other work. Because meetings cluster around a fixed calendar, most directors combine board work with executive roles, consulting or several directorships.
What people find hard
- The reading load before every meeting. Board packs can run to hundreds of pages and arrive only days beforehand, so preparation often lands in evenings and weekends.
- Legal accountability for collective decisions. Directors carry duties under the Corporations Act, including for decisions the board makes as a whole, not just for the parts they personally argued for.
- Limited control over delivery. You can question, guide and approve, but the executive runs the organisation, which frustrates directors who want to act on what they see.
- Little time to master an unfamiliar business. You may join a board in an industry you don't know well and need to ask useful questions within a couple of meetings.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ non-executive directors?
Finance and Insurance Services employs the largest share of non-executive directors, followed by Professional, Scientific and Technical Services.
Top employing industries
- 1Finance and Insurance Services
- 2Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
- 3Public Administration and Safety
- 4Health Care and Social Assistance
- 5Mining
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 38% | |
|---|---|---|
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 24% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 20% | |
| Postgraduate | 10% | |
| Other | 8% |
Will AI replace non-executive directors?
This is a low-exposure role. The board's core work is testing management, weighing trade-offs and carrying legal responsibility for the decision, none of which a system can hold. Board portal software such as Diligent, video meetings and analytics that flag movements in financial or compliance data have already changed how directors prepare and monitor, but they inform the discussion rather than replace the judgement made in it.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Board and committee meetingsPortals and video conferencing handle the logistics and the documents, while the questioning, the debate and the vote stay with the people in the room.30%low
- Reading and testing board papersSummarising tools can condense a long board pack and highlight variances, but deciding which two or three points deserve challenge is still the director's job.25%moderate
- Strategy, performance and succession discussionsAI can model scenarios, but the trade-offs between growth, risk and the people who will deliver the plan are settled by the board over several meetings.25%low
- Financial and risk oversightDashboards and monitoring software surface exception reports, though reading them against the organisation's strategy and appetite for risk is board work.20%low
Common questions about becoming a non-executive director
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do non-executive directors get paid?
Median earnings are $145,600 per annum, before tax, though many directors hold more than one appointment and each pays separately. What moves the figure is the size and type of organisation, and chairing a committee such as audit or risk usually attracts a fee on top of the base director's fee.
How do you become a non-executive director?
Most first-time directors come from senior executive or specialist careers and then add a governance qualification such as the Australian Institute of Company Directors' Company Directors Course. A first appointment is usually to a not-for-profit, government or advisory board, which builds the committee and meeting experience larger boards expect.
Are non-executive directors in demand?
Non-executive directors are currently not in shortage, and employment is projected to grow 3.5% over the decade to 2035. The occupation is small and appointments are usually drawn from people with board-relevant senior experience, so the growth figure reflects continuing demand for oversight rather than a wide-open job market.
Will AI replace non-executive directors?
AI exposure in this role is low, because the board's work is judgement, challenge and legal accountability that cannot be handed to a system. Board portals and paper-summarising tools already cut time spent on preparation and on scanning reports for exceptions, but they change how directors prepare rather than who signs off on the decision.
What roles lead into a non-executive director position?
Chief information security officers, treasurers and company secretaries are common sources of board talent. A treasurer brings financial oversight, funding and risk expertise, with 59% overlap in skills and a typical pay difference of $36,200 more, while a chief information security officer offers the technology and cyber oversight boards increasingly need.
Can you be a non-executive director part time?
Board work averages about 15 hours a week across the year, clustering around meeting dates and committee cycles, so most directors hold another role alongside it. Preparing for meetings is the part that takes the time, and it falls in the days before each one.
Related roles
- Chief Information Security Officer
- Company Secretary
- Treasurer
- Chief Executive Officer
- Project Director
- Procurement Officer
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