Professional board member: Employees in the board bring with new knowledge and perspectives

For more than a decade, Carol Sergeant was a member of the Board of Directors of Danske Bank and could definitely see the collaboration and not least respect between the various professionals which, she believes, is a special characteristic of the culture in the Board of Directors in Danske Bank.

"I have to say that I am very positive about the collaboration that exists between the board members of Danske Bank. I have experience from various boards across several countries, but I have not experienced as good collaboration as at Danske Bank. There is respect for different roles and with what background you join the Board, which I have not seen on other boards”, says Carol Sergeant.

Employees bring the close perspective

On Danske Bank's Board of Directors, the employee-elected members have four out of the12 seats on the board.

And, according to Carol Sergeant, the employee-elected members of the Board of Directors bring perspectives and knowledge into the board room, which would otherwise not be in there.

The remaining part of the Board of Directors is professionally appointed members, who will be elected at The General Meeting . They provide extensive knowledge and have very extensive CV’s. But the employee elected members of the Board of Directors have a different perspective which is also very important on the board premises:

“They have the direct look from the employees point of view and can – directly in the board room – explaine how employees experience the decisions that are made and what consequences it will have seen from an employee perspective”, she says.

Another element that is reinforced by the employee-elected members of the Board of Directors is the diversity of the board room.

“With the heavy experience of the professionally appointed board members, a certain age and seniority are often also followed into the board room. With the employees of the Board of Directors, we ensure a slightly lower average age that is valuable for the bank.

Equal respect - regardless of background

When Carol first entered the board room in 2013, she experienced that employee-elected members of the Board of Directors often only contributed to conversations about direct employee-related matters.

But it has changed significantly in the 11 years that Carol was part of the Board of Directors.

”Today there is equal respect, no matter what background you have in the board. There is also a great understanding among everyone that we are equal in the board aiming for the same goals”

Carol Sergeant recalls in particular when each member of the Board of Directors were to be evaluated:

“Those who were to evaluate us could not see any difference between us who were professionally appointed and the employee-elected members of the Board of Directors from the data and the talk we had. I think that was very telling about the culture and symbiosis that has arisen on the board, which I believe is very valuable for employees, customers and investors alike, and which I have not experienced at the same level on other boards”.

The next election of employees to the Board of Directors will take place in the beginning of 2026.

The employee-elected members of the Board of Directors in Danske Bank are

• Kirsten Ebbe Brich, Chairman, Finansforbundet in Danske Bank
• Bente Bang, Vice Chairman, Finansforbundet I Danske Bank
• Louise Aggerstrøm Hansen, Chief Analyst, Markets
• Aleksandras Cicasovas, Chapter Lead, Transaction Banking