Meeting Management Insights by iBabs Board Portal Software

How To Keep Track Of Meeting Follow-Up Action Items + Template

Date: 31 March 2022

Meetings can be busy and, with so many discussions and topics to cover, it’s easy for quick actions and verbal agreements made during the meeting to be forgotten. But this can affect productivity and waste precious resources, such as time, effort and energy. Board meetings held in this way may mean that research and projects take longer to complete. This is often due to missed deadlines or miscommunication from either side. If the action’s notes and due dates aren’t clear, it’s not possible to follow up or chase on these items. So, how can we, as directors and secretaries, prevent these situations from happening? One approach is to note down in the meeting minutes a task list of action items and make sure they are properly managed. Doing so will also make your meetings far more efficient, instead of spending the time discussing previous action items that weren’t done. In […]

A Complete Board Roles And Responsibilities Checklist For New Directors

Date: 16 March 2022

Whether you’re a brand new director or filling a position in a new business, there are plenty of roles and responsibilities to get to grips with. Even with the best succession planning possible, filling a previous board member’s shoes can feel overwhelming and daunting.  In essence, each board member and the board of directors as a whole have a range of fiduciary duties (or legal duties) to fill. The primary role of a board is to push a business toward its goals. Having these duties outlined and agreed upon helps ensure that members act with the best interests of the company and its shareholders in mind. It also sets the expectations for board members.  Common board fiduciary duties include: A duty of care A duty of loyalty A duty to act within the law A duty to act in good faith We’ll take a more in-depth look at each of […]

How To Organise A Virtual Board Meeting (Plus Agenda Template)

Date: 4 March 2022

Board members are often the most experienced and savvy members of any business. They help push the business forward and make critical decisions. As directors, they also have legal obligations and fiduciary duties to act in the best interests of the company.  They naturally have busy schedules and take time out to support your organisation. In turn, it’s expected that you’ll maximise their use of time and expertise. They may have professional and/or personal obligations and schedules that it’s important to abide by. So, instead of organising meetings at arbitrary times and taking up to a whole day (including travelling and lunch!) of your board members’ time, you can use remote meetings to limit the hours spent and make scheduling easier. A remote board meeting may feel daunting to begin with, but an effective agenda can make sure all the priority discussions are had, votes are cast and decisions are […]

Here Is A Sample Letter To Remove A Board Member With Respect

Date: 7 February 2022

With the honour of becoming a board member comes great privilege and responsibility. However, in some cases, board members may tarnish the reputation of a business with their actions, act unlawfully or simply not fulfil their obligations. In such cases, and in the absence of them volunteering to leave, you may want to remove a board member respectfully.  Interestingly, PwC asked board members whether they believed that at least one member of the board that they’re on should be replaced and 40% of those asked said yes. So, it seems to be a fairly prevalent issue. How do you remove a board member respectfully? Below, we’ll take a look at some of the options available and two sample letters to remove a board member. How to remove a board member If you need to remove a board member entirely, there are a few options to consider. Removal by ordinary resolution     […]

11 Steps To Writing Effective Board Papers Every Time

Date: 20 January 2022

If you’re not entirely sure what board papers are, let’s start there. Board papers outline key information on the discussion points, decisions and actions required for a board meeting and are usually a few pages in length. This is not to be confused with board minutes, which are different. Generally speaking, guidelines for a board paper include: An executive summary Recommendations Background information and context Discussion points and actions Board papers are a critical piece of the puzzle when it comes to governance, giving the key decision-makers the information they need and keeping board meetings as structured and effective as possible. Without being part of the day-to-day running of a business, the board of directors rely on the information given to them in board reports to make the right decisions. Without the right information and presentation, there may be oversights and misunderstandings that can have knock-on effects on the rest […]

How To Take Executive Session Minutes (With An Example)

Date: 5 January 2022

If and when the time comes to take executive session minutes, they must be treated separately from the minutes of the main meeting before or after which the executive session occurs. This is a type of confidential meeting that doesn’t tend to involve ‘outsiders’. In this case, outsiders are considered those that aren’t members of the board, such as staff or advisors, but this can vary. However, unless explicitly stated, minutes should still be taken to keep a record of the session. Let’s take a look at what the process is in this scenario and how executive session minutes differ from taking board meeting minutes. What are executive sessions? An executive session is a closed meeting of a governing body. It might take the form of a meeting-within-a-meeting but will have its own rules separate from the main meeting.  The purpose of an executive session is for the board of […]

Solidify The Relationship Between The Board And The Executive Director

Date: 28 December 2021

“Trust is like the air we breathe. When it’s present nobody really notices, but when it’s absent, everybody notices.” – Warren Buffett The responsibility of the executive director (or CEO) and the board of directors is, ultimately, to drive the business forward. Ideally, they would be focused on generating revenue and profit for private companies as well as driving donations, fundraising activities and operations for nonprofit organisations.  While the CEO and the board have shared long-term goals, sometimes they can disagree or miscommunicate and relationships can suffer. In these situations, strengthening the relationship between the board of directors and the executive director is key to keeping things on track. When the board and the executive director aren’t aligned or there is tension between the two, this is likely to cause wider issues for the business. Executive directors need an engaged board on their side so that they can go to […]

Zero mail — How to win the battle for your inbox

Date: 10 November 2021

An empty, tidy and well-arranged mailbox. Who doesn’t want that? Zero Mail or Inbox Zero is a term you hear a lot: no email. Zero Mail gives you a clear view of your inbox. But it goes further than that: it’s about setting priorities. Merlin Mann, the creator of this method, originally saw the inbox zero technique as a “step-by-step solution for email management”. In the United States, Merlin Mann is recognised as a productivity guru. His area of ​​expertise is email management and personal effectiveness. Focus is also a term that comes up often: concentrating completely and not working from scratch. What can you do with those two terms together? It is of course very tempting to work from your mail and as soon as a new one arrives, to answer the mail immediately. However, this way you can follow your mailbox all day long. How can you achieve […]

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