A well-organized board meeting can be an important element in fostering growth and innovation. To achieve this it is important to set specific goals and guidelines and ensure the appropriate people are in attendance at the right time. The more board members feel that their i thought about this time and expertise is valued, the more involved they will be in discussions and decisions.
It is vital to communicate the agenda and all materials in advance, at least 3-4 days before the meeting. This will allow board members to review the materials and formulate their opinions and thoughts prior to the meeting. This lets the chair begin the meeting with a short recap of the meeting’s focus and the main inputs sought. This helps to get the meeting moving at the meeting from the beginning and help keep it focused throughout.
When planning the agenda, it’s important to prioritize topics according to their importance and urgency. It is also essential to make sure that all the important issues are addressed. Prioritizing items in this manner will allow the board to make strategic decisions, and not just concentrate on updates. This will help make meetings more productive.
By sticking to the timeframes in the agenda will prevent board members from getting distracted. Making sure that noncontroversial items are on the agenda of consent can help to make room for discussion of more strategic issues. The final point is that giving the chair the choice to utilize the «off-agenda» at the end of a meeting, to make tangents more urgent and require more time can help avoid distractions and reduce wasted time.