Open and honest communications between board members help create confidence that fosters accountability. This leads to an organization’s board that is more involved and unified, and empowered to make decisions that support the company’s goals.
Board members who are new to the organization must be made aware of their duties and expectations prior to the start of their term. This includes the necessity to give time, establish professional and personal connections as well as participating in fundraising activities. A welcome letter will outline the communication channels, meeting dates and other pertinent information to aid new directors in settling in quickly.
It is important to customize communications for board members to meet individual preferences. Some people prefer reading long reports, while others be better able to comprehend visualizations of data. Avoid technical terminology when writing reports and other data to help make it easier to comprehend. Make use of analogies and real-world examples in order to illustrate the implications of data and reports, if necessary.
It’s also important to vary the style of board meetings instead of relying solely on PowerPoint presentations. Mixing up formats may help to limit the length of meetings and encourage the participation of board members.
Assure that board members have access to all necessary information even during meetings. Consider a document sharing platform that is user-friendly and secure with features, high scalability, and compliance with data security regulations. Some of the leading solutions include Diligent Boards, BoardEffect, Passageways OnBoard and Aporio.
https://boardroomtalk.org/improving-board-communications-effective-online-solutions/