My years of general management and P&L ownership gave me ample opportunities to interact with directors in the boardroom.
At first, I thought the board meetings were the absolute cornerstone of where and how we made big decisions. I would put all my energy into creating the best presentations and having the perfect narrative.
The meetings would start, and soon enough, I hit the wall and saw my “perfect” presentations halted by a barrage of questions, sometimes after only two minutes. A series of arguments typically followed between board members trading opinions on the very nature of the problem and their view of the solution.
I get it. No board member is perfect, and some will fall into the traps of not doing their homework, selfishly pushing their agenda, or simply not being great listeners.
But the vast majority of board members I interacted with were outstanding and genuinely dedicated to the company’s success.
So, what was I missing?
I did not understand that most of the action for the board happens outside of the boardroom.
One should consider these board meetings as just a part of a full-blown process where both the directors and the company’s management keep thinking about the performance of the past period and the next period’s goals.
It means a lot of work before and after these board meetings. It also means that great board members know how not to waste their energy on hours of discussions about inconsequential topics.
So, yes, there’s a life outside the boardroom, and the best decisions I’ve seen a board make were with topics handled adequately before and after board meetings.
So, if you have an upcoming presentation with your board of directors, here’s a short list of what I’ve seen work well in these interactions:
Understand the board dynamics
Like any team, each board has unique protocols, challenges, conflicts, and alliances. It’s essential to understand these properly beforehand. How to interact with each of them? Who are the biggest influencers? What’s critical to each board member? What tensions or disagreements exist?
Ensure proper understanding of the topic at hand
As you get ready to bring your topic to the board’s agenda, it’s critical to assess each board member’s position on it before you walk into the room. How much education do they need on the issue? What’s its relative importance for them? Do they already have strong views on the desired outcome?
Be clear on what you precisely ask for
There’s a significant difference between informing, consulting, or asking for a decision on a topic. I’ve learned to be clear upfront on what I was expecting the board to do with the matter brought to them.
Handle areas of disagreement during the meeting
Identify tensions and areas of misalignment on the issue at hand before a board meeting. It enables you to go straight to these challenges for the actual meeting. You can then put your presentation aside and turn into the facilitator of a rich debate for resolution.
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The best board meetings I’ve experienced were when we’d get the benefit of the company’s brain trust in one room to enable a whole debate. It required a lot of upfront work and, importantly, a key partner who would ease the dialog with each board member outside the board room.
For me, that partner was the CEO. But it could be any other key executive or a board member herself.
Interacting with board members doesn’t have to be intimidating and isn’t reduced to the sacred boardroom. Board members are humans, after all, so get to know them, nurture relationships, and educate them on business realities.
By doing so, you’ll achieve way more than most executives.