NEDs aren’t in the business day in and day out. As a Non-Executive Director, you might have eight board meetings a year, and a reasonable proportion of the value that you bring to the business will be in those meetings. If you are lacking focus and unprepared for meetings, then this will impact the board’s ability to make informed decisions on important topics. So, you must be prepared for each one!
It’s important that you establish a process that works well for you when it comes to preparing for board meetings. The good news is that a few changes to your approach can really level up your game as a Non-Exec and help an average board member become a more focused and higher performing NED.
Here are some tips for better board meeting preparation:
Read and make notes
Board meeting dates are usually scheduled a year in advance and you should receive your board pack at least one week in advance of the meeting so with those both in mind, make sure that you block out time in your diary to prep. It’s important to choose a time of day when you do your best thinking (some may be fresher in the morning, while others prefer evenings) and will have no distractions. Remember to allow yourself enough time for reading, taking notes, thinking, researching and following up with relevant people if you need more information.
In some cases, board packs can be hundreds of pages long so for those, it’s useful to scan the contents to get a sense of the information being presented and a feel for the issues before diving deeper into the detail.
When making notes and reading the papers, think about these questions:
- What are we missing here?
- Do I have enough information to make an informed decision on the topics raised?
- What am I worried about for this business?
- What opportunities are we missing/ could we supercharge?
- What’s going on with the culture/ atmosphere?
A good rule of thumb is to be 70% led by the board papers and 30% by your own knowledge of the organisation, conversations you’ve had and your own sense of what is going on. Keep that in mind, when making notes and thinking about the points you want to make/ the questions you want to ask.
As part of this stage, don’t forget to read through the previous board meeting minutes to remind yourself of the action points and to check that you have completed any tasks assigned to you.
Check in
Once you’ve read the papers and made notes, if you have any concerns or highlights you wish to discuss before the meeting, or if you have any questions, it’s a good idea to arrange a pre-meeting chat with the Head of Finance or the Chair. This is particularly worth doing if you are a new NED/ Trustee on a board as it will give you the opportunity to talk things through in advance and make you feel more comfortable on the day of the board meeting. In addition to this, if you don’t understand something in a particular report, be sure to ask the report author before the board meeting and avoid springing it on them on the day.
If you are a Chair, offering informal drop-in sessions after the papers are ready enables Board Members to come to you with any technical queries before the group meets all together. This works really well for more complicated topics as it helps to ensure that the meeting runs more smoothly on the day, making it less likely for you to encounter unexpected questions and keeping discussions more constructive and detailed. It also helps new recruits to settle in and encourages their development.
Self reflect
Some NEDs fall into the trap of just showing up to meetings and going through the motions. It’s important to focus your mind and set an intention or goal for how you want to behave and/ or what you want to achieve in the meeting. Part of your board prep should involve some time to take a step back and think:
- What will be your contribution to the upcoming meeting i.e. how will you add value?
- What do you want to know from the meeting?
- What actions can be commended?
For example, reflecting back on previous meetings and honestly assessing your own performance can really help shine some light on what is working for you and areas that you need to improve on. Thinking back to your last meeting for example, were you distracted at any point? Did you switch off? Did you show up late? Did you listen to other people’s points and actively participate in discussions? What could you have done to improve your performance? Remember to think of the positive points too. What worked well for you? Having this self-awareness will help you prepare for the next meeting and bring your whole self into the boardroom so that you can discharge your duties as a NED effectively.
Make arrangements in advance
Once you receive the invite to the meeting, block the time out in your diary, decide on how you’ll attend (i.e. online or in-person) and RSVP to let the Company Secretary know your plans. If you are going to need to present information to the group, plan how you will do this and whether or not you need to distribute any information to the group ahead of time. For hybrid meetings, find out if you’ll be required to take on any additional roles on the day (i.e. acting as a co-host for those attending remotely). Ensure that you are comfortable with the task and do a test-run if you need to. If you are joining the meeting remotely, check you have all of the details you need, make sure you have access to the right software and that all the updates have been installed. It’s important to test that your microphone and camera are working properly too and that you’ve earmarked a quiet space to work where you won’t be disturbed. Ironing out these small details in advance of your meeting significantly reduces the chances of you running into problems on the day so that you can join the meeting with a calm, clear and focused mind with no distractions. Entering a meeting with this mindset will set you up for success.
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