The pandemic has made life more difficult than ever before for non-profit organizations to operate and garner community support, and many are relying on remote board meetings to make important decisions and ensure their survival. However it can be difficult to conduct a successful remote board meeting without the physical presence of all members.
A clear, well-defined agenda will keep your board meeting remotely focused and on topic at all times. Include your board members in the process of establishing the agenda. This will help you decide what topics to cover. Then, send the agenda ahead of time as you can to all attendees so that they can prepare. This will ensure that the attendees are aware of the topics to be discussed and they could add anything to the agenda prior to. Using an online board portal that is secure to distribute agendas as well as other documents will help to reduce security risks.
Using video can enhance the participation of remote board meetings, by adding the essential face-to-face component to discussions. Video also allows participants to be aware of the body language of others and take note of non-verbal signals like excitement, boredom or impatience.
It can be a challenge for busy boards to schedule meetings in person, especially when they have many commitments both professional and personal. Finding the right time that is suitable for everyone is much simpler with remote board meeting software. SavvyCal’s free meeting polls, for example, allow you to suggest multiple times for your meetings and let participants decide on the times that work best for them. This can eliminate the need to send back-and-forth emails and saves you a lot of time and effort.