The management of a business is usually delegated to the board of directors (and this can be set out in your Articles of Association). Even if you’ve assigned some day-today decision-making responsibilities to other departments of the company it is vital that your entire board stays up-to-date and informed via regular board meetings.
You must ensure that your attendees have sufficient time to prepare for the meeting. Ideally, this is done by sending out the agenda as well as any reports in advance. You should give at minimum a week’s notice to allow for enough time for everyone to attend.
The first item should be the decision-making items. This includes all issues that require a vote but should also include discussions points as well as any pending or unfinished business from previous meetings.
The efficiency of the company is also an important topic. This includes reviewing any significant milestones and achievements in addition to identifying future strategies and areas for improvement.
The most important thing to remember is that discussions must be focused and productive. Distractions due to new topic ideas can take up a lot of time and divert attention from the primary goals of the meeting. Board members must respect each other’s views, and should not interrupt anyone, other than when they have an issue or question to raise. It is also a proper manner to shut down cell phones and only make calls in the event of an emergency. This will help everyone remain alert and vigilant.