Why have a board meeting and how to plan it
Preparing for a board meeting can be overwhelming for the administrator. Often the list of important matters to discuss is long and seems never-ending. However, there are some tips that will help you plan for an effective meeting.
But before we get to those essential tips, let’s get a full understanding of what a board meeting is for. Doing so will demonstrate its importance and shed some light on what a board meeting agenda could look like.
What does a board meeting usually consist of?
Board meetings are meetings that convene the board of directors of the company. The objective is to discuss important topics for the business. Any matter can be discussed and should be discussed in order of importance. A clear agenda should be set and shared in advance. For more effectiveness, and to ensure all the content is covered, the agenda should include suggested timing per topic. Board members have tight schedules, so the board meeting should stick to its planned timing. This can be a challenge for meeting organisers. However, overcoming this challenge can ensure that topics, such as business plans, annual accounts and company progress, are discussed and then addressed with an action plan. Ultimately, the board meeting is an opportunity to discuss planning and strategies that will lead to important decision-making and set the business on its path to success.
Here are some topics that can be discussed during your board meeting:
- appointment of new directors or C-suite members
- review of the quarterly performance and discussion of progress on the business plan
- discussion of new markets, potential partnerships or mergers
- agreement on company mission statement and values
Any other topic can be added to the agenda as long as they are essential to the business and of value to the attendees.
Why is it important to prepare for a board meeting?
The attendees at board meetings are the main reason why time management is essential for successful outcomes. Additionally, preparation will bring more strength to the discussion by ensuring that the appropriate research is done ahead of the meeting. This should lead to faster and better-informed decision-making. As such, the organiser of the meeting collects all the materials necessary per agenda item to cover all details. The goal is to give the board members a full understanding of the agenda item, what it entails, and the potential consequences for the business. A well-prepared meeting will lead to better decisions and ultimately a more successful business.
The board meeting checklist you’ve been waiting for
In the previous section, we touched on the importance of preparation for a board meeting. However, other measures will be taken to ensure that the meeting makes the best use of time. In this section, we look into the three stages of the meeting and provide you with a checklist that can lead to successful outcomes.
In a nutshell: the three stages of effective board meetings
Preparing, managing and following up are the three stages to keep in mind for those responsible for the board meeting. Let’s look at these stages one by one in more detail.
Preparing ahead of your board meeting
Before you write down the agenda, it’s essential that the goal of the meeting is clearly defined. This should lead to the appropriate selection of the audience for the meeting and might also influence its form (face-to-face or virtual). Additionally, setting the date of the meeting might be a challenge for the organiser, due to board members’ availability. To determine your agenda, list the topics by importance and allocate time and speakers per topic. Make sure the agenda is shared with the board members in advance so that they can prepare. Finally, there should be someone assigned to write the meeting minutes ahead of the meeting. This function can be fixed or can be rotating, depending on the dynamic of your business.
Managing the agenda during the actual meeting
Start the meeting by highlighting the goals and purpose. Doing so will set the scene for the desired outcome. The role of the timekeeper is essential to ensure that all topics are covered and that everyone stays focused. This exercise requires agility, as a fine balance needs to be struck between respecting the time allocated and allowing for some flexibility. Clear notes are taken during the meeting. They highlight the decisions made on each topic and any associated next steps with timelines and owners. Make sure they are summarised at the end of the meeting and schedule follow-up meetings for each task.
Follow up with actions
The work doesn’t stop when the meeting is over. For full effectiveness, the minutes are distributed to all attendees. They should cover all discussed topics but be to the point. Every agreed action should be assigned to an owner with a due date for completion. Make sure the minutes are saved in a place that’s easy to access.
This board meeting checklist will guide you to efficient management
The section below provides meeting organisers with an essential checklist that will lead to successful board meetings.
Prepare for the meeting as early as possible
Start preparing for the next board meeting as soon as the previous one is concluded. The date should be set then, and the follow-up items should be part of the agenda. Send out the invite to block the date in the calendar and prepare a first draft agenda as well. By doing so you have the base structure of your meeting and can build on it. This means that you may start your preparation for the meeting months before the meeting itself.
Tweak the agenda and get it approved
Keep an eye on the progress made on different tasks and tweak the agenda accordingly. Additional items may be added based on their importance. Sharing agenda topics with the board meeting in advance will lead to additions and deletions. It will also help prioritise the topics that need to be discussed.
Prepare the documentation and any backup analysis to support each item
Each agenda topic requires sufficient documentation to discuss the item thoroughly and at a granular level if necessary. The documentation should provide the context, statistics and analysis of the topic. This step is critical as it asserts the validity of the content discussed and brings confidence to the decision-making process.
Ensure the board members are engaged
Driving engagement can be done by sharing the content of the meeting in advance. It is recommended to send the agenda a week in advance to give sufficient time to board members for review. At this point, the meeting organiser should be open to minor changes.
Validate the purpose of the meeting
Don’t hold a meeting for the sake of it. If the agenda is light, and the topics are not critical to the business, perhaps the meeting should be pushed to a later date to ensure optimal use of everyone’s time. More importantly, topics of the meeting that can be solved or goals that can be accomplished outside of the board meeting should be dealt with separately.
Prepare the outline of the minutes in advance
Be careful to keep the outline of your meeting minutes clear and well-structured. Ideally, the same outline should be followed for each meeting to ensure consistency.
Board meetings are critical to your business. Preparing for them, keeping the purpose in mind and following up with actions will ensure the business roadmap is on track to achieve its goals. For more on how to manage your business, check the following content:
