Board meetings are a great opportunity for directors of non-profit organizations to discuss a range of issues. The topics range from assessing the performance an organization to discussing the future strategies. Nonprofits rely on board members who have diverse backgrounds and expertise in order to steer them towards success.
In order to have a productive board meeting, it’s crucial that everyone is well-prepared and has read relevant documents prior to the meeting. The agenda should be drafted by a group and shared ahead of time so that participants have time to go through the documents and prepare for discussion. Nothing renders a meeting ineffective than having participants scramble to grasp the most important points at the same time, so it is crucial that agendas for meetings contain enough details to allow attendees to participate effectively.
Making clear the criteria for decision-making and sharing them with all participants helps the board focus discussions to an agreed-upon goal. This helps to avoid unnecessary discussions that take up time during meetings and hinder the board from achieving a consensus or voting on crucial issues. Utilizing technology tools to facilitate real-time buildingbettertrustboards.org collaboration makes it easier for members to share and communicate documents, even when they are geographically dispersed.
The proper mix of board member will create a more productive atmosphere and help in energizing meetings. It is important to choose an equal amount of optimism pessimism, youth with age, and experience with fresh ideas. Changes in the location of the meeting and/or the time of the day will also help to energize the discussion. This is because it can alter the atmosphere and help participants break out of their routines. Finally, evaluating the quality of meetings at least once per year is crucial to making improvements. To do so, give each board member two sticky notes and ask them to rate their overall satisfaction with the meetings on a scale of + (what is working well) to -(what could use improvement).