A well-organized meeting of the board is a solid basis for growth and innovation. To achieve this, it is essential to establish clear goals and structures for the meetings, and ensure that the right people are in the room at the appropriate time. The more board members feel valued for their time and expertise and knowledge, the more likely they are to be involved in discussions and making decisions.

It is important to distribute all materials and the agenda in advance. This is best done who should be on the board at least 3-4 days prior to the meeting. This allows board members to read through the material and formulate their thoughts and opinions ahead of the meeting. This allows the chair to begin the meeting by providing a brief review of the meeting's purpose and the primary input sought. This helps to get the meeting moving at the meeting at the beginning and keep the focus on the meeting throughout.

Prioritizing items according to their importance and impact is essential when creating the agenda. It is also crucial to make sure that all major topics have been covered. This will allow the board members to concentrate on strategic decisions and not just updating. This will help make meetings more productive.

Sticking to the time frames in the agenda will prevent board members from becoming distracted. Be sure to keep non-controversial topics off the agenda of consent to save time and allow for more thorough discussion of more strategic issues. In addition, allowing the chair to utilize an "off-agenda" at the end of the meeting to push tangents that need more time is a good way to keep distractions at bay and to limit wasted time.