The first step in a successful meeting is to develop an agenda that is effective. The agenda for board meetings do not need to be a pre-determined document that is used each time. Use the agenda to help you change the way you conduct your meetings to get the most value for your board.
The agenda for the board’s meeting must clearly define the purpose of the meeting to avoid wasting valuable time and to ensure that all relevant topics are addressed. The agenda should also contain the attendees required and optional in order to organize to accommodate them. It is recommended that the agenda be distributed to board members prior to the time of the meeting, so that they can give them an opportunity to read the agenda and prepare for the meeting.
It is important to include an item on the agenda of the board meeting for new business for the board, so that members can raise any concerns or issues which were not addressed at the previous meeting. The old business section allows board members to look over any issues that are not resolved and decide on what to do about them. The agenda for the board should include an area for committee reports to ensure that the board gets important information from diverse committees on specific aspects of their work.
Finally, the last item of the agenda for Board meetings provides an opportunity for the Board to discuss items that are not on the Consent Agenda and to formally take action to approve the meeting’s minutes. This will ensure that there aren’t any ambiguities in the minutes of the meeting and help ensure the accountability.
