Meetings at the Board are essential to meeting company goals, preventing conflicts and ensuring compliance. But they can only be productive if everyone in the room is involved and committed to fostering a constructive dialogue. By applying these best practices you can turn your Board meetings into powerful engines that drive your business towards its long-term vision and goals.
The first step to running an effective board meeting is to establish clear expectations and establish meeting protocols. It is about clearly defining who is responsible for each item on the agenda and making sure that everyone has an understanding of what is expected from your meeting.
By setting and adhering time limits for each item on the agenda, you’ll be in a position to maintain focus during the entire meeting. This helps attendees feel that they are valued. Limit the number of agenda items in order to ensure that your board members can discuss each item with ease. Voting on non-controversial matters can be accomplished through a consent agenda, which will free time to discuss strategic issues. Use visual tools like countdown timers to monitor your time, especially when dealing with sensitive subjects.
Discussions that are tangled can lead to unnecessarily long meetings and distract from the goal of meeting. Include the word “parking area” on the agenda for topics which require further investigation or consideration but aren’t at the top of your priority list. Be sure to regularly revisit the parking Board Management Software lot to assess the need for further investigation or added to the agenda or assigned as an assignment.