Planning is the key to hosting an efficient and lively board meeting. It is essential to get the right people into the room at the appropriate time, distribute agendas and other materials promptly, set aside a reasonable amount of time for meetings and ensure that everyone has access the necessary resources.
Achieving these goals requires lots of planning, including selecting a date and time that suits enough members to form a quorum as well as their calendars. You will need to send an invitation for the meeting along with a board book, which includes all the information and reports required by your members for each item. The board book should be handed out several days before the meeting so that everyone can review it and be at ease for the discussion.
Idealy it is best to limit the meeting to just two and a half hours. This will show your board members you value their time and will prioritize efficient, effective discussions. It also helps keep them motivated throughout the meeting which can be difficult when topics take longer than expected or when the board is discussing unplanned items.
The agenda should be adhered to. This is another way to keep the meeting lively. It’s difficult for everyone involved to work hard on preparing for the meeting only to have it diverge from its original subjects. This can be due to poor planning, off topic conversations or a dominant personality.