Part 2: Beating the Board Meeting Blues!
Nailing the Board Deck
The board deck is a vital tool in board meeting preparation—a chance to move beyond data-heavy slides and create an effective board presentation that inspires meaningful discussion. It is not meant for you to read dull slides of 12-point font and paragraphs of content… lulling your board to sleep!
As you think about your board packet and board deck remember that it is a reflection and representation of the work that you are doing in the clinic. It should be consistent with your branding and be visually appealing but not overwhelming. While these are little things, it displays intentionality, dignity and excellence in all that you do.
The following slides are taken from Bella’s board deck with explanations of what has worked well for us. Hopefully, this can be helpful for you as your build your board presentation and organize your board meetings to maximize time and efforts.
We create one power point theme for the full year and use it in all meetings: staff meeting, board meeting, ect. Work with your marketing person to ensure colors, font, logos, and images are consistent with the brand theme for the year.
By now, you know this is our source and summit at Bella. Our board has tried to focus more on prayer as we start the meeting. When in person, we start in the chapel and ask the Lord to enter into the discussion, guide us in what is most important and reveal what are distractions that are not of God. We ask that we can be in line with what he wants for this mission and that all that we do can glorify him. We especially pray that we can get out of the way for Him to do His will.
Begin by clearly identifying the schedule for the meeting. You may choose to add times if that is helpful for you.
Remind the board of the upcoming meetings for the year. Ensure all of your board members can still attend these dates and that there are not any new conflicts.
Include board reminders and housekeeping items. Ensure that everyone received the board packet and was able to review it. The “State of the Mission” is an opportunity for the you to set the tone of the meeting for the board.
Remind the board of of current board terms and leadership of the organization. This is an opportunity to discuss any changes: additions, departures, and terms to evaluate.
As the leader of your organization, your number one job is to protect and articulate the mission of your organization. That includes at the board level. The board’s number one job is to keep you doing your job. To do this, ground always in your “Why”. This may feel repetitive or unnecessary since the board is their for the organization, but it is NOT. Over communicate the WHY! We all need to remember our “why.”
Each year we also create mission theme for the year. We also remind the board of our annual mission theme and where the spirit is leading our organization as this is the lense we want everyone to be looking through for the meeting.
The executive summary is sent prior to the board meeting. (Check out part one to better understand the board packet.) The executive summary portion if the deck is a brief review of what was sent in the board packet. It is NOT a full on presentation! The board should have come prepared and already know what is in this section. We briefly role through to answer any clarifying questions prior to discussion.
The KPI dashboard is a visual representation of the executive summary.
These slide are some of the highlights from the executive summary. It includes an overview on items such as care, finances, fundraising, and community outreach.
The finance committee or treasurer may choose to chime in or be the primary presenter of this section. This is briefly data driven, followed by a summary of your financial state. Be prepared to give any recommendations or asks of the board.
Present high-level financials to prevent getting in the weeds. The full financial packet through the most recent month should be included in the board packet and the board should be encouraged to check it out prior to the meeting. Ideally, your finance committee will have reviewed the finances just prior to the board meeting as well, and will speak to any praises, concerns or challenges that the organization faces.
This is a time for clarification and questions of financials. Financial stewardship is important. No money = No mission. That being said, it is easy for financials to be the focus of the meeting. The board should commit that this is NOT the focus of the entire meeting and mission discussion should dominate discussion and time.
Include high level snap shots of the P&L, Balance sheet and current cash position. A year over year graphic can do a long way for depicting what is happening with cash.
Include high level fundraising efforts and outcomes. This may include how fundraising efforts are compared to prior years, upcoming events or anticipated grant activity. You may want to have your primary fundraiser present for this discussion.
Move into a working session/discussion. This part of the board is focused on making decisions and solving problems. This is the BEST part of the board meeting! You get to use the wisdom and knowledge of the people who are on this journey with you. This is why you have people on your board.
Include slides for the discussion portion that are brief data points but offer a reminder of what is being asked of the board and what you want to come away with.
As you wrap up your presentation and meeting, don’t forget to end in prayer! (We actually include a slide for that reminder!)
Your board is a gift to you and your organization! By preparing an engaging board deck, you can foster collaboration, protect your mission, and lead with clarity in every nonprofit board meeting. Hopefully, this can help you to use the gifts and talents of your board to best serve your organization.