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Fun fact: a board of directors meeting doesn’t start when everyone sits around a table, and it is called to order. Your work begins long before then. Before the meeting, you must take care of the logistics to make the time run smoothly. It helps to collect and send out all of the regular reports, including the financials, director reports, and any other business filings that need to be reviewed before the meeting. If you send it out to the directors early, they have time to take notes, prepare questions and become more familiar with the information.

Meetings are a powerful tool that is widely misunderstood. Like many professionals, I have read and enjoyed many Dilbert comics that point out the pain and frustration of poorly run meetings. I’ve been in my share of disappointing meetings. I’ll share a short example with you and data showing how widespread bad meetings have become. Finally, I will cover the seven habits – the most potent meeting tips I have used – that will set you up for success.

The executive in charge of board development for a large national philanthropic organization with more than 100 regional boards recently asked me, “What’s the best board meeting you ever attended?” Got me thinking…No, it wasn’t chaired by me. Yes, it was one of my clients. Here’s what it looked like:

Before, During, and After Board Meetings - A compilation of practices offered through the ASAE Executive Section listserv in March 2010.

Is this a frequent scene at the start of board meetings? The meeting is called to order, and suddenly nearly everyone at the table — even the board chair — is feverishly reading the agenda and reports, even though they were distributed days or weeks in advance. Perhaps you are the rare association management professional who has not experienced the frustration of well-meaning but unprepared board members. However, for everyone else, we offer the following to share with your board.

Board Source has been fielding governance-related questions posed by nonprofit leaders for over 30 years. Here are the answers to those questions most frequently asked about board meetings.

Should board meetings be held during this time? Any nonessential meeting should be postponed. If an appointment cannot be delayed, association boards should move it to an electronic meeting via video or telephone. It is essential to remind attendees that recording of board meetings is not allowed. During this time, association boards should delegate as much to management.

Consensus decision-making is a process that seeks to arrive at decisions that everyone can live with by seeking to resolve or mitigate the concerns of the minority. In contrast, the will of the minority is overridden by majority rule. The consensus process is based on the assumption that every group member has a valid perspective that is potentially crucial to making good decisions. It requires everyone in the group to be committed to clearly understood common goals and to be able to differentiate between their personal preferences and what will help the group achieve its goals.