S.E.E. Us Lead

Nicole Sandford is a seasoned professional and qualified audit committee financial expert with extensive experience advising complex organizations in their most challenging times. She currently serves on the board of Aspira Women’s Health (Nasdaq: AWH) where she is a member of the audit and nominating and corporate governance committees.

Over nearly three decades at Deloitte, Nicole was known for a strategic mindset and uncommon leadership. She was selected for roles with increasing responsibility, rising to lead the firm’s nearly $600 million regulatory and operational risk practice during a period of strategic transformation. She integrated more than 2,000 professionals in the U.S. and India and completed an acquisition of Huron Consulting’s life sciences practice to build a market-leading regulatory advisory practice.

Nicole’s client work at Deloitte focused on governance, crisis response and regulatory risk management and remediation across sectors. She has helped the boards of 80+ companies (including several of the largest global banks) to transform governance, risk and compliance programs. As a CPA and audit partner for several public companies, Nicole is experienced in M&A, securities offerings, LBOs and other complex transactions and SEC reporting matters. Nicole authored many of Deloitte’s most foundational corporate governance publications and led its response to the governance aspects of the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd Frank Acts. She was the architect of its Center for Board Effectiveness and its board diversity initiatives. Nicole has extensive relationships with directors, institutional investors, proxy advisory firms, and other governance thought leaders in the U.S. and globally. In 2020, Nicole joined the Ellig Group as its Executive Vice President and Global Board Services Leader. In this role, she advises boards and senior executives on matters related to governance, particularly those related to board composition, competency and diversity. Nicole is a frequent speaker on governance, risk and culture, and leading practices for boards and board committees. She has spoken at major universities around the country, including Stanford, Yale and Columbia, as well as professional organizations such as the ABA, the NACD, The Society for Corporate Governance, The International Corporate Governance Network, Compliance Week, and The Conference Board. Nicole has received numerous awards including Millstein Center’s “Rising Stars of Corporate Governance” and The International Alliance for Women’s “World of Vision” Award. She holds a Certificate in Cybersecurity Oversight from Carnegie Mellon University and the NACD. Nicole is the Chair of Girl Scouts of Connecticut, director of the Stamford Public Education Foundation and Emeritus Member of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware Advisory Board. Nicole is passionate about helping people with cancer as a volunteer driver for the American Cancer Society’s “Road to Recovery” program and as the patient advocate/representative on the Greenwich Hospital Breast Center Accreditation Leadership Committee. She lives in Connecticut with her husband and three children.