Advisory Board Slide Examples: How Pitch Decks Present
When advisors deserve their own pitch deck slide, and how to show what each one does for the company. Five real advisor slides compared.
Advisory Board Slide Examples: How Pitch Decks Present Advisors
Five advisor slides from real pitch decks, shown in full, compare whether each slide says what its advisors do for the company or only who they are.
TL;DR
An advisor slide earns its place when each advisor covers a specific gap the founders can't, and the slide says which one. BioSculpture does this most directly: a table gives each advisor a title (Engineering Consultant, Medical Advisor, Patent Prosecution) and a background that supports it. Handspring labels two advisors "Clinical Advisor" and one "Advisor", with past roles in behavioral health and healthcare. Islet names a chair for its scientific advisory board and lists four medical professors. LX Ventures lists four well-known names under "World Class Advisory Board" with one line each and no stated role for the company. The Open Fund, an investor rather than a startup, groups nine advisors under "Startup advisors" and "Technology advisors".
Advisor slides from real pitch decks
Each example shows the exact stored slide above its analysis and links to the full teardown. Backgrounds are as stated on the slide at the time; we have not checked them independently. Stage and year are given only where the deck states them.
BioSculpture Technology team slide — slide 6
Medical technology. Investor presentation highlights dated August 1, 2017, referring to a Regulation A+ offering. The slide itself is printed as page 5. The regulatory slide guide uses a different slide from this deck.
BioSculpture deck, slide 6. Exact stored slide matched to this analysis.
Our analysis: Each advisor has a title that names a job, and the background under it supports that job. An investor can see which three areas (engineering, medicine, patents) the company has covered outside the core team.
Evidence and limitation: Three bullets per person is dense for a slide. The table also doesn't say how much time each advisor gives or whether they hold equity; one line on involvement would help.
What a founder can adapt: Use a title column that says what each advisor helps with, and keep each background to facts that support that title.
Supporting analysis
What the deck claims: "Advisory Board", in a Name / Title / Background table. Peter Ciriscioli, Engineering Consultant: materials science and mechanical engineering degrees (UC, Stanford PhD), roles at BAE Systems, GE Corporate Research and Fiberite, "4 patents, two books, and more than 20 published journal articles." Brigadier General Richard B. Yules, MD, Medical Advisor: board-certified otolaryngologist, Stanford and Harvard residencies, Pentagon role. Thomas J. Perkowski, Esq., Patent Prosecution: "Successfully prosecuted over 650 patents".
Presentation choice: Each advisor has a title that names a job, and the background under it supports that job. An investor can see which three areas (engineering, medicine, patents) the company has covered outside the core team.
When it does not fit: Three bullets per person is dense for a slide. The table also doesn't say how much time each advisor gives or whether they hold equity; one line on involvement would help.
Behavioral health care for children. Stage and year not stated. The advisor slide follows the founders slide.
Handspring Health deck, slide 5. Exact stored slide matched to this analysis.
Our analysis: Three advisors, each with a short, relevant background. The "Clinical Advisor" label tells investors the company has clinical oversight, which matters for a mental health service for children.
Evidence and limitation: Ghertner is labelled only "Advisor". His background suggests commercial or operating help; saying so would make his role as clear as the other two.
What a founder can adapt: Keep to a few advisors and put the label that matters most to your investors, such as clinical, first.
Supporting analysis
What the deck claims: "Our advisors". Gary Henschen, MD, Clinical Advisor: board-certified psychiatrist, former Chief Medical Officer for Behavioral Health at Magellan Healthcare. Andrea Auxier, PhD, Clinical Advisor: licensed clinical psychologist, Chief Growth Officer for Aware Recovery Care, former Chief Commercial Officer for New Direction BH. Doug Ghertner, Advisor: CEO of IVX Health, former CEO of Change Healthcare (before its acquisition by Emdeon) and SVP of Client Solutions at CVS.
Presentation choice: Three advisors, each with a short, relevant background. The "Clinical Advisor" label tells investors the company has clinical oversight, which matters for a mental health service for children.
When it does not fit: Ghertner is labelled only "Advisor". His background suggests commercial or operating help; saying so would make his role as clear as the other two.
Diabetes therapeutics and diagnostics. Investor presentation dated May 2016.
Islet Sciences deck, slide 6. Exact stored slide matched to this analysis.
Our analysis: For a drug developer, a scientific advisory board in the relevant field is itself evidence. Diabetes centres and an islet transplant programme match the company's focus, and naming a chair shows the board has a structure.
Evidence and limitation: Only the chair has a detailed background, and no advisor has a stated role in the company's programmes. Cut the chair's degree details and add what the board reviews or decides.
What a founder can adapt: If science is the risk, show advisors from the exact field and name who leads the board.
Supporting analysis
What the deck claims: "Renowned Scientific Advisory Board". Thomas J. Kindt, PhD, Chair: former Chief Scientific Officer of Diomics and InNexus Biotechnology; from 1995 to 2005 Director, Division of Intramural Research, NIAID, NIH, "responsible for the management of the Division including 1,300 staff members, overseeing an annual budget of $340 Million". Also listed: Kevan Herold, M.D. (Professor of Immunology and Medicine, Yale), Jerry Nadler, M.D. (Director of the Strelitz Diabetes Center, Eastern Virginia Medical School), Steven Paraskevas, M.D. Ph.D. (Director of the Pancreas and Islet Transplant Program, McGill) and Christian Mende, M.D. (Clinical Professor of Medicine, UC San Diego).
Presentation choice: For a drug developer, a scientific advisory board in the relevant field is itself evidence. Diabetes centres and an islet transplant programme match the company's focus, and naming a chair shows the board has a structure.
When it does not fit: Only the chair has a detailed background, and no advisor has a stated role in the company's programmes. Cut the chair's degree details and add what the board reviews or decides.
Acquires and integrates SaaS technology companies. Deck dated November 2013.
LX Ventures deck, slide 6. Exact stored slide matched to this analysis.
Our analysis: Recognisable names and one exit figure make an immediate impression, and the layout is easy to read.
Evidence and limitation: No advisor has a role in the company, and "World Class" is a claim the slide doesn't support. For a company that buys other companies, an investor would want to know who helps find, price or integrate them.
What a founder can adapt: If you keep one-line bios, make each line say what that person will help with, such as acquisitions or selling to enterprises.
Supporting analysis
What the deck claims: "World Class Advisory Board". Four advisors, each labelled "Advisor" with one line: Alison Lawton, "Social Venture Philanthropist"; David Baxby, "Co-CEO of Virgin Group"; Reza Kazemipour, "Silicon Valley and Canadian start-up Board advisor"; Lance Tracey, "Co-founder of PEER 1. Sold for $526MM."
Presentation choice: Recognisable names and one exit figure make an immediate impression, and the layout is easy to read.
When it does not fit: No advisor has a role in the company, and "World Class" is a claim the slide doesn't support. For a company that buys other companies, an investor would want to know who helps find, price or integrate them.
A microfund investing in emerging tech and web startups in Greece and Southeastern Europe. This is an investor's deck, not a startup's: the advisors support the companies the fund backs. Stage and year not stated.
The Open Fund deck, slide 6. Exact stored slide matched to this analysis.
Our analysis: Grouping advisors by what they help with (building a company, technology) tells the reader what kind of help is on offer without a label on each name. "(so far)" is an honest signal that the list is still growing.
Evidence and limitation: Nine names is a lot for one slide, and only some have a result attached. Keep the advisors whose line shows a relevant result, and say how the funded companies get access to them.
What a founder can adapt: If you have more than four or five advisors, group them under headings that name the kind of help.
Supporting analysis
What the deck claims: "Advisors (so far)". "A strong network of advisors has been formed (and growing) to help the funded companies." Two groups: "Startup advisors" (founders and executives of Aster Data Systems, e-shop.gr, trustedplaces.com, Huddle.com and Pattern Insight, with lines such as "Raised more than $25 million of funding in 3 years" and "Grew e-shop.gr to more than 120 millions of revenue") and "Technology advisors" (a Google File System engineer, an NYU Stern computer science professor, an entrepreneur who organises Thessaloniki Open Coffee, and the CTO of Microsoft Hellas, noting "MS is also a sponsor").
Presentation choice: Grouping advisors by what they help with (building a company, technology) tells the reader what kind of help is on offer without a label on each name. "(so far)" is an honest signal that the list is still growing.
When it does not fit: Nine names is a lot for one slide, and only some have a result attached. Keep the advisors whose line shows a relevant result, and say how the funded companies get access to them.
A role label and a relevant background together show which gap each advisor covers.
Example
Advisors shown
Role label per advisor
Background matches role
Involvement stated
BioSculpture
3
Yes (engineering, medical, patents)
Yes
No
Handspring Health
3
Partly (2 of 3 clinical)
Yes
No
Islet Sciences
5
Chair only
Yes (diabetes, transplant)
No
LX Ventures
4
No (all "Advisor")
Not linked to a role
No
The Open Fund
9
By group (startup, technology)
Partly
No
Key Takeaways
Give each advisor a role label that names what they help with, not just "Advisor".
Match each advisor to a gap in the founding team: clinical, scientific, technical, legal or commercial.
Keep backgrounds relevant to that role. BioSculpture's patent advisor lists patents prosecuted, not unrelated honours.
A famous name without a stated role invites the question of how involved that person really is.
If advisors are a supporting point, a line on the team slide may be enough. Give them a slide only when they change the picture.
Build your advisor slide
Fill in each line before deciding whether advisors need their own slide.
Gap. Which skill or credibility does the founding team lack that an investor will ask about?
Advisor. Who covers that gap, and what is their most relevant past role?
Role label. What title describes what they help with (clinical, regulatory, patents, sales)?
Involvement. How often do they work with you, and do they hold equity or have a formal agreement?
Own slide?. Would one line on the team slide say enough? If so, leave out the separate slide.
Copyable framework: [Name], [role label]: [most relevant past role]. Helps us with [specific area]; [involvement, e.g. monthly reviews].
Illustrative example 1 — written by us
Before: David Baxby, Advisor. Co-CEO of Virgin Group.
After: David Baxby, [role label]: Co-CEO of Virgin Group. Helps us with [specific area]; [involvement].
What improved: Our illustrative rewrite, not LX Ventures' text. Bracketed parts are placeholders, not company facts. It adds a role and involvement to a name-only line.
What this guide adds to the team slide guides
The main team slide guide covers advisors in one line: include them only when they change the picture, and avoid long lists with no visible commitment. The industry team guides focus on founders. This guide is about the separate advisor slide: when a deck should spend a whole slide on advisors, and how that slide can show what each advisor contributes.
Common mistakes
Name without a role. Label what each advisor helps with.
Irrelevant credentials. Keep only the background that supports the role.
Unsupported adjectives. "World class" or "renowned" add nothing the bios don't show.
Too many advisors. Show the few who cover real gaps; put the rest in the appendix.
No sign of involvement. Say how each advisor works with you, if you can.
Diagnostic checklist
Each advisor covers a gap in the founding team.
Each advisor has a role label.
Backgrounds support the stated role.
Involvement is stated where possible.
A separate slide is justified; otherwise advisors sit on the team slide.
Frequently asked questions
How we chose these examples
Corpus: published pitch deck teardowns on StartupFundraising.com. Founder-uploaded private decks are excluded.
Selection (2026-09-28): we searched extracted slide text for slides whose opening words include "advisor" or "advisory" and that have a stored slide image. Excluded: slides where "advisor" refers to a customer or product (for example financial advisors as a market), combined team-and-advisor slides, and advisor slides already used by other guides (Coursmos in the edtech team guide, mHealthPharma in the biotech team guide).
Overlap check: the main team slide guide treats advisors as one consideration among founders' fit and gaps; the industry team guides focus on founders. The regulatory slide guide uses BioSculpture slide 15, not this advisory board slide.
Review: all five stored slide images were inspected on 2026-09-28 and matched to company, deck and slide number (editorial model review). No person has yet completed an editorial review of this page.
Advisor backgrounds are quoted as stated on the slides and were not verified independently. We make no claim that any slide caused a fundraising outcome.
