A well-organized board meeting is a critical aspect of effective governance. The Board of Directors meets to discuss and make decisions on important company issues, and ensure that the company is headed in the right directions. It can be difficult but there are simple guidelines that will allow you to have productive meetings and take effective decisions.
It is crucial to prepare beforehand and share the agenda with all participants prior to the meeting. A clear agenda will define key topics and allocate reasonable amounts of time for each discussion. This will stop meetings from getting off-topic, becoming bogged down in repetitiveness or becoming an exclusive meeting for a few individuals to participate instead of a broader discussion by the entire Board.
Prioritize two questions that must be addressed during each meeting. This is a well-known best practice that helps focus discussions and reduce the amount of items that need to be discussed during the meeting. It also allows time for discussion and a decision to take place around every issue, not just updates. The book for the board allows simple sharing of updates and a little time can be devoted to them during the meeting.
Communicate clearly the way decisions are made. This ensures that all participants are aware of the decision-making process and will be on the same team when it comes to resolving disagreements and achieving consensus. It also establishes expectations regarding the kind of discussion that will be held at the meeting, which includes finding common ground, examining all viewpoints, or resolving disagreements through a vote process.