Preparing For Your Board Meeting
Preparing for your next board meeting is an important task that could be daunting particularly if you’re new to the board or don’t have much experience with board meetings. Being prepared for the board meeting will ensure that you get important insights and guidance from experienced leaders and strategic advice. The first step is making sure that everyone on the board is aware of the agenda and have read relevant materials.
The next step is to determine the purpose of your meeting. This will help the board’s discussions and decisions. Reviewing the minutes from your last meeting will help you understand what improvements were made and what issues need to be discussed.
Be deliberate in choosing the agenda items for your meeting. Your board will be able to conduct the meeting more efficiently if you prioritize the most important issues first. This also helps to avoid the meeting getting stuck on the lesser important items. Additionally, every item on the agenda should be clearly laid out to provide information preparing for your board meeting or seek out information rather than just making a final decision.
Send your board agenda at a sufficient time in advance to allow everyone ample time to read it and review it. This is particularly important for in-person or virtual meetings that require quorum participation. Be sure to contact the executive team members who are responsible for submitting reports, and make sure they have the required materials.