Keep Your Board Meetings on Point

Board meetings are business meetings used to decide issues affecting the association. Since board members are donating their time to the association, leaders should make sure the board meetings stay on topic and move along. These suggestions are important whether your board meetings are in-person or online.

Ask for reports in writing well in advance of the meeting.

Forcing board members to type up their thoughts will keep their updates more focused. It will also force them to be prepared instead of winging it at the meeting.

Distribute an agenda early.

Email the agenda along with the written reports and last month’s meeting minutes to participants at least three to five days in advance of your scheduled board meeting. Make sure members are clear on the fact that they are expected to come to the meeting prepared, having read the agenda and other appropriate documents.

Start meetings on time.

You might be able to claim that it doesn’t hurt for you to start the meeting a few minutes late to allow that late-arriving member to get there. The problem is you’re sending the wrong message to participants. Without a set start time, that late-arrive member will likely be even later the next time around. Start on time and encourage tardy members to double their efforts to get their promptly for the next meeting.

Do not read previous meeting’s minutes.

You include them in the read-ahead packet for a reason. Unless a member has a question about the minutes or an item needs to be followed up with (per your current agenda), there is no need to go through them in detail. Simply move for corrections or approval.

Cut short needless discussion.

Do not discuss informational items. Unless it pertains to a business item for your association, it shouldn’t be discussed. If a member brings up a topic not on the agenda, steer the topic back to current items and offer to put it on next month’s agenda.

Use Robert’s Rules of Order.

Associations and boards have been using those rules of order for more than a century for a reason. Why? Because they work. Take advantage of a motion and a second. It will keep your discussion on track and help you to accomplish something.