Contrary to popular belief the board of directors of your company does not make the majority of decisions for your company. Although they are able to make decisions in a few high-impact areas (in the case of a venture-backed company and many of the decisions are listed in discover this info here the investment and governing documents) most important issues are made by committees or the CEO/management team with the input of the board.
Board meetings are typically more focused on plan, policy and oversight tasks than business operations. However, a board’s decisions can have a profound impact on the company. This is the reason it’s essential to organize and conduct board meetings that allow for constructive discussions and outcomes.
The first step is to make sure all board members are well-informed. To ensure that the board has productive conversations be sure to distribute the materials to board members in advance to allow attendees to be familiar with them prior to the meeting. Ideally, these documents must be clear and concise enough that they don’t require more than an hour of review.
Then, schedule time for the board to discuss. It is possible to allow attendees to ask questions or provide short remarks in an open forum. Also, plan time for presentations by external stakeholders. Set aside time for the consent agenda – one section where routine or noncontroversial topics may be ratified by a simple motion and vote.
Lastly, communicate the decision-making process at board meetings. Determine if the objective is to reach consensus or if a formal voting procedure is to be followed, and establish clear criteria to evaluate concepts. This will allow everyone to recognize their role in the process, as well as the potential effects of a decision making process gone awry.
