When a board meeting is opened the chair of the meeting notes that the board has come together to discuss business. This simple statement establishes the meeting as official and allows the chair to address agenda items in a timely manner.
Prior to discussing any agenda items, the chair of the board makes sure that a quorum present. This involves calling the names of all attendees, and ensuring that the board has enough members to conduct official business.
Getting distracted by new discussions can be a waste of time and distract from the most important issues. This can be reduced by establishing the concept of a “parking area” at the end of your agenda for the board, in which members can agree to discuss a variety of topics at a future time. Make sure you keep your promise to return to the parking lot to determine whether the subject should be further researched, added to the agenda or delegated.
Once the board has established the quorum, they must begin to discuss any reports from committees sent before the meeting. The board should then go over the items and decide on what to do next. This may include the vote on a types of boards and board members categories resolution or simply asking for members to take a stance on a particular issue. It is important to note all discussions and actions in the board’s minutes. By using a tool like Boardable’s Minutes Maker ensures that the minutes of board meetings are thorough, organized and easily read by both attendees and non-attendees.