And yet, meetings are not only important and necessary to do the work of a board (and much else). They also can be great. Meetings can be smartly run, tightly focused, energizing, engaging, utilizing the intelligence and passion of the people in the room. They can keep to a tight schedule. They can be events that people look forward to attending and leave with a clear sense of what they’ve accomplished and the work ahead. BoardSource offers several highly useful resources on running effective meetings, tailored specifically for nonprofit boards. “Productive Meetings” provides the details that make a productive agenda, effective preparation, engaging meeting and diligent follow-up. “The Best Board Meeting I Ever Attended” distills the ingredients of an efficient, powerful meeting. “Board Meetings-FAQs” is especially helpful in explaining the Consent Agenda, and “Preparing for More Effective Focused and Strategic Board Meetings” explores the roles of different stakeholders at board meetings. |
