Effective Board Meetings

Effective Board Meetings can assist companies reach their goals by bringing in experts to encourage collaboration, as well as facilitating decisions. However, organising effective meetings requires that Board members focus on efficient time management and have a clear on the future. Board members also need to be aware of how meeting length, layout and rules affect their effectiveness.

Meetings that are long, cluttered or confusing can waste valuable time. This is usually due to a lack of preparation or insufficient support from the executive team. Board members might not be aware of their duties and may be dissuaded from taking part in discussions that don’t have to do with the agenda. On the other hand, a board meeting that ends too early may indicate that the board has become a rubber stamp, and is not questioning any decisions made.

Board meetings should always be accompanied by an organized and concise agenda and be distributed in advance of the board meeting outlining the focus of each discussion and the key points to be addressed. The chair of the board must act as facilitator virtual data room for the meeting, leading the discussion to ensure that the relevant issues are dealt with within the time frame allotted.

A productive Board meeting will usually result in a list with to-dos and actions to complete prior to the next meeting. This can include preparing for the meeting by reading materials, researching topics and creating thoughtful questions or ideas. The board should also encourage the culture of accountability among its members by making sure that they are following up on the actions and decisions from previous meetings.