Question 1

How accurate are these fee estimates?

Accepted Answer

They're anchors drawn from typical UK SME market bands — NED £15–40k, chair £25–60k, advisory £1–3k per session — positioned by scale and complexity. Individual seats settle on value, risk and scarcity; treat the output as the opening frame for a fair negotiation, not a quote.

Question 2

Why do investor backing or an upcoming deal raise the fee?

Accepted Answer

Because they raise the work and the risk: more reporting, more sessions, personal duties exercised under scrutiny, and decisions that get re-examined in diligence. Complexity premiums are the market pricing responsibility, not prestige.

Question 3

Should a first-time NED accept a lower fee?

Accepted Answer

Sometimes modestly, for a genuinely developmental first seat — but a seat carries full directors' duties at any price, and a fee far below band usually signals the company undervalues the role itself. Better one fairly-paid seat taken seriously than two token ones.