Best Practices for Successful Board Meetings
Board meetings are essential to helping achieve company goals, preventing conflict and ensuring compliance with regulatory specifications. However, they can only be effective if everyone is committed to fostering an open and constructive dialogue. Implementing these best practices will transform your Board meetings to dynamic engines that will propel your organization towards its long-term goals and vision.
Setting clear expectations and meeting guidelines is the first step towards conducting a well-organized board meeting. It is crucial to identify who is responsible for every item on the agenda and ensure that all participants know what to expect.
Establishing and adhering to timeframes for each agenda item helps to keep the focus of the meeting. This will show attendees that they are valued. Limit the amount of agenda items to ensure that your board members are able to discuss each item efficiently. Noncontroversial items can be voted on via the consent agenda, which will free up more time for discussions on strategic issues (BoardEffect). Utilize visual tools such as countdown timers, and adhere to your time frames, especially when addressing sensitive topics.
The distraction of the latest discussion topics can divert attention from the purpose of the meeting and lead to unneeded discussions. Include a “parking area” on the agenda for topics that require further study or consideration but aren’t the top of your priority list. Be sure to regularly revisit the parking lot to evaluate the need for further virtual platforms investigation, added to the agenda, or assigned as tasks.